Carpool lanes: Experts disagree

Do carpool lanes work? It's an important question considering how much focus Caltrans is putting on adding the lanes across the state. There are two dueling studies out that seem to arrive at different conclusions, according to MediaNews:

Carpool lanes are a multibillion-dollar waste of concrete, causing more traffic headaches than they solve, according to a recent study by two Bay Area engineering professors. Whoops, hold on a sec. Carpool lanes are an effective tool for easing congestion, according to a follow-up report done by two other professors, from UC Berkeley, who happen to work across the street from one of the authors of the first study.

Comments

[Joseph]

Earlier comments by Callie and Michael L. get at the heart of why many choose not to do their part at reducing traffic congestion. When I lived in El Segundo and worked in Long Beach, and worked from 8AM-8PM, I could drive to work in 30-40 minutes OR take a two hour bus ride along PCH (which I did a few times before giving up). Several years later I lived in Whittier and worked in Glendale (insane, I know), and tried Metrolink. But the last train left Glendale at 5:00PM, and that just wasn't an option given my work schedule. Now a days I live in Huntington Beach, work in Long Beach, and can ride my bicycle three days a week -- heaven!

[MECapron]

We need to better apply our consumer electronics to transportation. You'll find such applications as inpromtu carpooling (using cell phone GPS) and parking meters that guide you to the nearest open spot with a little searching of GuardianAngelCars.org.

Or ask for the whole "Electronics Applied to Transportation - Suggestions for a Fossil Free by 2033 Plan."

[Pete McFerrin]

"So, how many people here are going to do it instead of leaving it up to someone else or come up with some whiny anal excuse not to?"

I do my part every day, by commuting by bus and bicycle.

[Raul Garcia]

There have been some great suggestions here, increasing the minimum amount of passengers in the car pool lanes, trains and intelligently located stations. We can actually do something now as Alex suggested by leaving your car at home once a week. So, how many people here are going to do it instead of leaving it up to someone else or come up with some whiny anal excuse not to?

[Pete McFerrin]

"It will take $10/gallon gas prices for people to stop driving alone in their SUV."

...in large part because planning practices from the 1930s onward have made it impossible to walk anywhere--and if you can't walk anywhere, riding the bus becomes a real pain in the ass.

I live a 5-minute walk from a bus stop, but I happen to live in an area that was subdivided in the '20s, before the days of the Federal Housing Administration and "model laws" that encouraged long blocks, culs-des-sacs, and street arrangements that eliminated through traffic. Pretty much everything built after 1940 is pedestrian-unfriendly. Unfortunately, subdivision plans are "scars on the landscape"--i.e., pretty much irreversible--so we can't just start blasting out through streets.

(Anyone speak French here? "Culs-des-sacs" is the plural of "cul-de-sac," right?")

[Callie]

I've spent a number of hours trying to figure out how to get from my home in Los Feliz to my office in Santa Monica using public transportation. It can be done, but instead of my usual 40 minute commute, it turns in to an 1 hour and 45 minute commute across 3 bus lines. How is that efficient?

[Alex]

Why do people think you have to commute the same way every day? If everyone took a bus, train or carpooled just ONE day a week, rush hour traffic would be reduced by 20%. Sure, some days you need your own car to run errands or stay late. But most folks could try an alternative at least once a week. Carpooling or riding transit doesn’t have to be “all or nothing.”

[Jesse]

People need to stop worrying about what works best for ME and come up with solutions with the COMMUNITY in mind. That's why carpooling doesn't catch on- most Californians only care about themselves. It will take $10/gallon gas prices for people to stop driving alone in their SUV.

[Michael L]

Carpooling only works for a small portion of the population. It isn't the 1950's anymore, not everyone works a strict 9-5. Even if they do, what if they need to stay to finish some work? What if they want to go early? There are so many problems with the carpool lane idea that I hardly know where to start. I would rather of the freedom to leave when I need to leave on my own schedule. Having a good public transportation system would do this. I could take the 6:30 train instead of the 6 o'clock and have nobody waiting for me. That being said we already built the lanes so we shouldn't get rid of them, just adjust the way they are used. Make them carpool lanes and toll lanes for people willing to pay more to get to work or wherever faster. Don't give it up to private company's though!!! And don't build any more unless you are filling in a hole or something like that. I would rather a sepulveda train not go down the middle of the freeway because it would be better if it could go to the getty then to UCLA.

[jon]

Carpool lanes are a joke. In Brazil they are ONLY for buses which makes sense - or even better why don't we convert the useless carpool lane into train tracks? Think of the 405 - with trains on it - a lot of jobs are close to the freeways - so naturally people could take the train to work. It would take millions putting stations in - but it would be worth it. L.A. could be a incredible place - but without the proper transport its a shame. And why is no one considering monorails on smaller streets in LA!? Don't get me started...

[calwatch]

If this tells you anything, it's that you never hire an electrical engineer to do a civil engineer's job. The previous study was made by the EE department, which just looks at the numbers and doesn't analyze queuing theory, spatiotemporal effects, and uses questionable logic. It is no better than if the biology department just gathered some numbers and made some conclusions. The CEs do rip into the EEs pretty well (with the civility required for an academic paper), and the paper is on the ITS Berkeley web site.

[rod]

I think the carpool lanes would work if they were three or four people to a car. But state only has it as two to a car. So you're only taking one car off the road, wow big deal. Why not three or four cars?, I think that companies and people should get together and at least try to carpool three or four to car. Then people would be able to save some money and time on our freeways....