Riders must pay $40 to $50 up front into a Metro account for each transponder plus a $25 security deposit. (Photo by Scott Varley, Contributing Photographer) A series of cameras and sensors monitor cars traveling along the 110 Express Lanes in the Harbor Gateway area of Los Angeles on Friday, Apr 13, 2018. Besides a quicker ride for those willing to pay, the use of solo drivers in the car-pool lanes were supposed to lessen traffic in the general purpose lanes, although evidence is mixed. A round-trip during peak hours on the 10 Freeway Express Lanes is about $11. The price of a ride fluctuates by time of day, costing more during rush hours and less during off-peak times. According to Metro, the two pay lanes reduced 118,844 kilograms per day of greenhouse gases, equal to removing 12,593 passenger vehicles per year. The purpose was to give drivers the option of paying for a quicker ride, to reduce traffic congestion and reduce air emissions and greenhouse gas emissions. ![]() Department of Transportation, Metro converted the carpool lanes, known as High Occupancy Vehicle lanes to toll lanes, called High Occupancy Toll or HOT lanes in 2013. HOT lanesĮxpress Lanes exist on two freeways: on the 110 Freeway from the 405 Freeway to South Los Angeles and on the 10 Freeway between the 605 Freeway and the 101 Freeway in the west San Gabriel Valley.Īfter receiving a $210 million grant from the U.S. If not paid on time or ignored, a $30 delinquent penalty is added, bringing the fine to $55, plus the cost of the toll. If a motorist is pulled over by the CHP for illegal use of the toll lane, the fine is $341. Under the current Metro Express Lane system, fines are $25 for the first violation. Instead of sending them a violation notice, or a traffic ticket if caught by the CHP, Hahn wants to simply send them a bill for the toll and be done with it. If someone is late for work or needs to see their grandchild in the hospital, there’s no reason why they can’t ride the Express Lane, even without the transponder, Hahn said. feel like driving and parking have become a criminal activity.” “It’s this whole shaming thing just for jumping into an Express Lane that bothers me. I think people in L.A. “I would like to decriminalize our Express Lanes,” said Hahn during an interview last week. Instead of always requiring purchase of a transponder and registering your car with Metro, Hahn suggests the agency make the toll lanes more user friendly. Los Angeles County Metropolitan Transportation Authority board member and county Supervisor Janice Hahn has introduced a motion that will reduce the number of fines charged to drivers and open up a punitive system to the occasional user. Total revenues reached $130.9 million, with $47.3 million from fines and $83.6 million from the actual paid tolls. The fines for illegal use of what Metro calls Express Lanes represented 36.4 percent of the revenues collected by Metro from 2014 to 2016, according to an audit obtained by this newspaper in a public records request. ![]() If he ignores the fine, he faces add-on delinquent charges and a hold on his registration. ![]() Sticker transponders can be used to pay tolls on every tolled bridge, lane and road in California.ĭrivers with sticker transponders pay the full toll regardless of eligibility.Ī switchable transponder can be obtained by opening up an account with one of California’s other tolling agencies.When a driver inadvertently enters a pay lane on a Los Angeles County freeway, he is breaking the law and must pay a fine. Prior to starting each trip, it is the driver's responsibility to indicate the number of occupants in the vehicle by moving the switch to the appropriate setting (1, 2, 3+).ĭue to processing and fulfillment delays, switchable FasTrak® transponders are out of stock until September 2020. To be eligible for free or discounted toll rates, drivers need a switchable FasTrak transponders (also called FasTrak Flex ®) that has a small black switch that can be moved to indicate the number of occupants in the vehicle. ![]() On some of California’s express lanes, qualifying carpools and other select vehicles are eligible for free or discounted toll rates. It's important to get a transponder from the agency that operates the bridge, lane or road that you’ll use most, because each tolling agency has its own rules and minimum requirements.
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