BILL ANALYSIS                                                                                                                                                                                                    Ó



                                                                  AB 2405
                                                                  Page  1

          Date of Hearing:   April 16, 2012

                        ASSEMBLY COMMITTEE ON TRANSPORTATION
                               Bonnie Lowenthal, Chair
                 AB 2405 (Blumenfield) - As Amended:  April 10, 2012
           
          SUBJECT  :  High-occupancy Toll Lanes:  qualifying clean 
          alternative fuel vehicles

           SUMMARY  :  Exempts qualifying clean alternative fuel vehicles 
          from toll charges imposed on single-occupant vehicles in 
          high-occupancy toll (HOT) lanes, unless prohibited by federal 
          law.  The bill specifically provides that this exemption does 
          not apply to the imposition of tolls on toll roads, toll 
          highways, or toll bridges.  

           EXISTING LAW:

           1)Grants the California Department of Transportation (Caltrans) 
            and local authorities, for highways under their respective 
            jurisdictions, general authority to permit exclusive or 
            preferential use of highway lanes for high-occupancy vehicles. 
             

          2)Allows, until January 1, 2015, qualifying clean alternative 
            fuel vehicles that display the proper clean air vehicle decal 
            to use high-occupancy vehicle (HOV) lanes, regardless of the 
            number of occupants in the vehicle.  Qualifying vehicles 
            include vehicles that are 100% battery electric, hydrogen fuel 
            cell, compressed natural gas vehicles, and advanced technology 
            partial zero emission vehicles.  

          3)Authorizes specific HOT lane programs in Alameda, Santa Clara, 
            and San Diego Counties.  HOT lane programs allow drivers of 
            single-occupant vehicles to pay to use HOV lanes.  

          4)Additionally, grants authority to the Los Angeles County 
            Metropolitan Transportation Authority (Metro), in cooperation 
            with Caltrans and pursuant to memorandum of understanding with 
            the United States Department of Transportation (US DOT), to 
            operate a HOT lane and transit development demonstration 
            program on State Routes (SR) 10 and 110 in Los Angeles County. 
             

          5)Establishes the California Transportation Financing Authority 








                                                                  AB 2405
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            (CTFA) within the Office of the Treasurer and authorizes CTFA 
            to issue, or approve the issuance of, revenue bonds to finance 
            transportation projects.  CTFA also has the authority to 
            approve the imposition of tolls as a part of a transportation 
            agency's financing plan to repay revenue bonds.  

           FISCAL EFFECT  :  Unknown

           COMMENTS  :  HOT lanes are increasingly being implemented in 
          metropolitan areas around the state and the nation.  HOT lanes 
          allow single-occupant or lower-occupant vehicles to use an HOV 
          lane for a fee, while maintaining free travel to qualifying 
          HOVs.  The purported benefits of HOT lanes include enhanced 
          mobility and travel options in congested corridors and better 
          usage of underutilized HOV lanes.  

          Currently, there are only a handful of HOT lanes in operation in 
          California, including:

          1)14 miles of southbound Interstate 680 through the Sunol Grade 
            in Alameda and Santa Clara counties; and,

          2)20 miles of Interstate 15 in San Diego County.  

          These routes represent only the embryonic stage of what is sure 
          to be a substantial build out of HOT lanes around the state in 
          the very near future.  The Metropolitan Transportation 
          Commission, for example, is in the midst of developing an 
          800-mile Regional HOT Network that will extend from Sonoma 
          County in the north to Gilroy in the south.  Metro is embarking 
          on a one-year pilot project that includes development of HOT 
          lanes on the Interstate 10 and Interstate 110 in Los Angeles 
          County.  Additionally HOT lane projects are underway in 
          Riverside County and are being studied in the Sacramento region. 
           

          While single-occupant clean alternative fuel vehicles enjoy 
          access to HOV lanes in California, they do not necessarily enjoy 
          free passage on toll bridges or toll highways.  In fact, 
          qualifying clean cars must pay full fare to use the toll roads 
          in Orange County but enjoy discounted rates to cross the San 
          Francisco Bay Area bridges and to use the 91 Express Lanes in 
          Orange and Riverside Counties.  Also, there will be no 
          discounted rate for clean cars using Metro's Express Lanes when 
          they open later this year.  








                                                                  AB 2405
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          With the increase of HOV lanes being converted to HOT lanes, the 
          author is concerned that the incentives provided today to 
          encourage the proliferation of clean cars, namely access to HOV 
          lanes, remain available.  In this way, the author believes that 
          "AB 2405 will give current and future clean car owners certainty 
          and will continue to provide a valuable incentive for purchasing 
          clean air vehicles to help offset some of the additional costs 
          associated with the purchase of new and expensive technology."  

          Opponents argue that a proliferation of hybrid vehicles into HOV 
          lanes will add to the congestion that buses will encounter in 
          those lanes.  They are also concerned that allowing clean cars 
          free access to HOT lanes will reduce the revenue that these 
          lanes will generate, particularly as the number of these cars 
          grows. 

          As of the end of last month, almost 19,000 white stickers and 
          176 green stickers have been issued.  Both clean car programs 
          are set to expire on January 1, 2015.  

           REGISTERED SUPPORT / OPPOSITION  :  

           Support 
           
          California Natural Gas Vehicle Coalition
          California Electric Transportation Coalition 
          CALSTART
          Clean Energy

           Opposition 

           American Council of Engineering Companies
          California Transit Association

           
          Analysis Prepared by  :   Janet Dawson / TRANS. / (916) 319-2093