BILL ANALYSIS Ó
Senate Appropriations Committee Fiscal Summary
Senator Kevin de León, Chair
AB 405 (Gatto) - Los Angeles County high-occupancy vehicle
lanes.
Amended: June 27, 2013 Policy Vote: T&H 10-0
Urgency: No Mandate: No
Hearing Date: August 30, 2013
Consultant: Mark McKenzie
SUSPENSE FILE.
Bill Summary: AB 405 would prohibit the establishment or
continued operation of high-occupancy vehicle (HOV) lanes on
specified segments of state highway route (SR) 134 and SR 210 in
Los Angeles County, unless the hours of operation are restricted
to hours of heavy commuter traffic.
Fiscal Impact:
One-time Department of Transportation (Caltrans) costs of
$482,000 in 2013-14 to replace HOV lane signage to indicate
limited hours of operation (State Highway Account). These
costs reflect replacement of 35 overhead signs, at a cost of
$10,000 each, and 132 ground- or barrier-mounted signs, at a
cost of $1,000 each.
Potential future one-time costs of $482,000 for signage
replacement to the extent that the lanes are converted back
to full-time operation following a Caltrans determination
that part-time operation had specified adverse impacts
(State Highway Account).
Minor and absorbable one-time costs in 2015-16 for Caltrans
to report on the impact of limiting HOV lane use to periods
of heavy commuter traffic (State Highway Fund).
Background: Existing law authorizes Caltrans and local
authorities to permit preferential use of highway lanes for HOVs
under specified conditions, which grants access to vehicles with
more than one occupant. Prior to establishing an HOV lane,
Caltrans or the local entity must perform engineering studies to
evaluate the impacts of the lane designation on safety,
congestion, and highway capacity.
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In northern California, HOV lanes are only operational Monday
through Friday during posted peak congestion hours when commuter
traffic is heaviest. All other vehicles may use the lanes
during off-peak hours. In southern California, HOV lanes are
generally separated from other lanes by a buffer zone, and are
operational at all times. These distinct operational practices
are due to different traffic volumes and commuter patterns in
the two regions. Northern California highways usually
experience congestion only during weekday peak commute hours, so
full full-time operation would leave the HOV lane relatively
unoccupied during off-peak hours and thus not constitute
efficient use of the roadway. Southern California normally
experiences very long hours of congestion, typically between six
to eleven hours per day, with short off-peak traffic hours.
Part-time operation of HOV lanes under these conditions is
generally considered infeasible.
In its annual HOV report for 2011, Caltrans indicates that the
peak-hour volume in the SR 134 HOV lane was 860 vehicles, well
below the optimum volume of 1,650 vehicles per hour. In the SR
210 HOV lane, the peak-hour usage was 1,511 vehicles, very near
optimum capacity, though usage drops substantially after the
6:00 p.m. hour.
Proposed Law: AB 405 would prohibit the establishment or
operation of HOV lanes, effective July 30, 2014, on SR 134
between SR 170 and SR 210, or on SR 210 between SR 134 and SR
57, unless the operation is limited to hours of heavy commuter
traffic, as determined by Caltrans. The bill would allow
Caltrans to reinstate 24-hour HOV lanes on or after May 1, 2015,
if it determines that the restricting the hours of operation has
an adverse impact on safety, traffic conditions, or the
environment, and submits a specified notice to the Legislature.
The bill would also require Caltrans to submit a report to the
Legislature by January 1, 2016 on the traffic impact of limiting
the use of HOV lanes on SR 210 and SR 134 to hours of heavy
commuter traffic.
Staff Comments: The restriction of HOV-lane use to commute hours
in the SR 134 and SR 210 corridors would require replacement of
35 overhead sign and 132 ground- or barrier-mounted signs at a
cost of approximately $482,000 in the 2013-14 fiscal year.
Similar costs would be incurred as early as 2015-16, if Caltrans
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makes a specified determination and reinstates 24-hour
restrictions. These costs reflect fabrication and installation
costs, as well as costs associated with any necessary lane
closures and traffic control measures. There could be
additional Caltrans costs, to the extent that public relations
and outreach efforts are necessary.