County closer to HOT lanes

County closer to HOT lanes
By LILLIAN KAFKA
lkafka@manassasjm.com
Wednesday, October 13, 2004


Elected officials in Prince William County are looking more closely at plans for pay-to-cruise interstate lanes and they have some commuter-friendly suggestions of their own.

High-Occupancy Toll lanes, or HOT lanes, should be seriously considered, said members of the Board of County Supervisors on Tuesday after they heard a presentation by Gary Groat, director of project development for Fluor Virginia.

Fluor Virginia, an Arlington-based transportation company, has submitted a public-private partnership bid to build 56 miles of HOT lanes from 14th Street in Washington, D.C., to the Massaponax interchange in Spotsylvania County.

"We really have to examine these proposals because there is no federal or state funding for it," said Supervisor Chairman Sean T. Connaughton, R-at large. "This may be our only hope for road and transit improvements in this corridor."

Fluor's $1 billion proposal would add a third lane to the reversible High-Occupancy Vehicle lanes that exist between the north- and south-bound lanes of Interstate 95.

Instead of requiring two passengers, the new lanes would require three or more passengers per vehicle to avoid a toll charge.

Groat said that in California, where HOT lane popularity is growing, more people are car-pooling to use the HOT lanes without having to pay.

Fluor's design also calls for an additional 24 exit and entrance ramps with some for buses only.

The design, Groat said, encourages bus transit systems.

The Bus Rapid Transit system that is being encouraged with the plan would access existing and undeserved transit areas.

Supervisor Maureen S. Caddigan, R-Dumfries, suggested that more park and ride lots be built in Prince William to take advantage of the HOT lanes.

"It looks like there is a light at the end of the tunnel," Caddigan said about the proposal.

VDOT doesn't have plans to extend the existing HOV lanes for years.

Groat said that if environmental impact studies are done within 18 months, construction could begin by 2006.

But the Commonwealth Transportation Board has to first decide if it wants HOT lanes, then who should build them.

Fluor Virginia has made one of two proposals submitted to the Virginia Department of Transportation.

Clark/SCC/KPRI made the other proposal and is scheduled to present it to Prince William officials later this year.

The Board will send a letter to the Commonwealth Transportation Board to encourage it to choose HOT lanes and make it speedy.

The Bus Rapid Transit could even be used on U.S. 1, Connaughton suggested.

Instead of calling HOT lanes "Lexus Lanes" as critics sometimes refer to them, Groat suggested a new name.

They're not ways for only the wealthy to bypass traffic jams on the general lanes, he said.

"They should call them "Lumina Lanes," he said, since studies have shown that in California people from all social and economic strata use the HOT lanes.

Single-passenger cars could pay up to $7 dollars or more to drive on them.

Tolls are calculated per mile and the average toll could be about 15 cents per mile, Groat said.

The tolls could change every six minutes and go up or down depending on congestion. If lanes are relatively clear, the charge is low. If they get congested, the rate increases, just like peak phone rates or electricity use times.

Highway managers would be able to keep an eye on the lanes by monitoring about 150 cameras watching the entire stretch of road from Spotsylvania to the District.

Only cars with Smart Tag or EZPass stickers could use the toll lanes because cash won't be accepted. High occupancy vehicles would also use a sticker to indicate that they shouldn't be charged.

Also in the works is a Fluor proposal for a $693 million expansion of the Beltway HOV lanes between the Springfield Interchange and the American Legion Bridge.




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I have no idea how this is going to work.

"High occupancy vehicles would also use a sticker to indicate that they shouldn't be charged."

And where would a commuter get such a sticker? What would the burden of proof be? What happens to ensure that once you get the sticker you don't suddenly stop carpooling?

This is INFURIATING.

Another thing I haven't seen anyone else comment on is the statement "Instead of requiring two passengers, the new lanes would require three or more passengers per vehicle to avoid a toll charge." I read that as HOV-4. Some cars just can't handle four people, especially if the driver is long legged and needs to put their seat back, and sometimes it is hard enough just getting that third person without a long wait. While this may be good for slugs at some lines by reducing the line without increasing the driver flow, it could make it harder on you when you need to drive. You have to have a sticker (so you have to plan ahead), squeeze more people into your car (and make it uncomfortable and/or unsafe if you have to adjust your seat), longer waits to fill your car; some drivers may actually find it more convenient and less time consuming to take their chances on the regular lanes.

I realize something is needs to be done to improve the traffic flow, and I don't want to stir the hybrid discussion into this thread, but I am always leary of plans that are pushed so hard by those who would benefit financially - the construction firm and the bus companies. That is one of the beauties of the slug system, it is cheaper for all involved and you aren't stuck with fitting into a fixed schedule.

I have also been wondering about the statement that the HOV cars would also have a Smart Tag to get on the system. I could not figure any way that this would prevent cheating, since these cars would (initially) be free. Then it dawned on me what they must be planning (Note that this is was NOT stated by them). I'll bet that each HOV Person would have to have a card on them. In other words, the HOV car goes through and the system detects 3 cards. Is that possibly what they are thinking?

Separately, the smart tage system requirement for HOV vehicles may in itself put an end to slugging, if there is a requirment of a "formal" carpool registered for each car. (Again, I have not read this, just thinking out loud). Bob

This is RIDICULOUS!!! Why do we fight to drive to D.C. to come back to PW or VA to pay our taxes to then have them propose this system, that's going to cost us MORE money, require us to probably double the time it takes us to get to work -- gosh!! I can go on and on.

And, the county is reaping the benefits of their home values rising and generating more revenue that way, too (even though they reduced the rate per 1,000, they're still taking in much more money) -- and, b/c more houses are being built b/c people want to come live here, b/c it takes only a little bit of time to get to work b/c we have such an AWESOME system!! And, why do they think that is....b/c people like Fluor Corp. or our county Sups. didn't invent it!!

I really think everyone needs to plan on going to the meeting on 10/19. This has to be nipped in the bud with a very loud voice from the slugging community!!