They’re taking the “free” out of freeways.
This weekend, solo drivers using a 14-mile stretch of the San Bernardino Freeway will have to pay a toll if they want to use the carpool lanes. The existing carpool lanes are being converted to High-Occupancy Toll (HOT) lanes between the 605 interchange and Downtown L.A.
Carpoolers will not be charged for using these special lanes, but they will still need a FasTrak transponder. Solo commuters will be charged a toll in these Express Lanes. Tolls will vary based on traffic congestion. Metro says they’ll range from 25 cents a mile to $1.40 a mile.
That would make the highest potential toll a whopping $19.60 one way. Metro estimates the average toll will be somewhere between $4 and $7.
At a news conference, Mayor Villaraigosa praised these new lanes as the wave of the future. Already, there are HOT lanes on the 110 Harbor freeway. Metro is considering a plan to put them on Interstate 5 between Castaic and the San Fernando Valley.
I asked the Mayor to respond to criticism that these lanes favor wealthy drivers.
3 Comments to “Mayor Villaraigosa Defends New Toll Lanes on I-10”
February 22, 2013 at 5:56 PM
Eric,
What does "I'll do anything to get my face on TV" Tony have to do with this? Most of these lanes don't go through LA. He's not with CalTrans. He has no say so in the fees. He's such a media whore that he'd show up at your kid's birthday party if you told him a camera was there. Giving him this forum has as much relevance as getting the mayor of San Francisco, Chicago, or New York to comment on this. Please don't pander to him anymore.
February 22, 2013 at 6:02 PM
There's no pandering to anyone. Ever. He does have a say in the tolls, as he serves as the Chair of the Metro Board, which is the agency responsible for implementing these new lanes.
February 28, 2013 at 9:09 AM
He didn't answer the question. The question was, don't these toll lanes favor the rich. There is absolutely no way you can say "no" to that. If it costs $8 to $16 EACH WAY, that's $160 to $320 a month. Therefore, only people with an extra $160 to $320 a month lying around can afford these tolls.