BILL ANALYSIS Ó
AB 210
Page 1
ASSEMBLY THIRD READING
AB
210 (Gatto)
As Introduced February 2, 2015
Majority vote
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|Committee |Votes |Ayes |Noes |
|----------------+------+----------------------+--------------------|
|Transportation |15-0 |Frazier, Achadjian, | |
| | |Baker, Campos, Chu, | |
| | |Daly, Dodd, Eduardo | |
| | |Garcia, Gomez, Kim, | |
| | |Linder, Medina, | |
| | |Melendez, Nazarian, | |
| | |O'Donnell | |
| | | | |
| | | | |
| | | | |
| | | | |
| | | | |
|----------------+------+----------------------+--------------------|
|Appropriations |16-0 |Gomez, Bigelow, | |
| | |Bonta, Calderon, | |
| | |Chang, Daly, Eggman, | |
| | |Gallagher, | |
| | |Eduardo Garcia, | |
| | |Gordon, Holden, | |
| | |Jones, Quirk, Rendon, | |
| | |Wagner, Wood | |
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AB 210
Page 2
SUMMARY: Requires the conversion of high-occupancy vehicle (HOV)
lanes on State Route (SR) 134 and SR 210 from full-time to
part-time operation. Specifically, this bill:
1)Prohibits, notwithstanding any other law [except if the
California Department of Transportation (Caltrans) makes a
specific determination, described below], an HOV lane from being
established on SR 134 between SR 170 and SR 210, or on SR 210
between SR 134 and SR 57 unless the HOV lane is established on a
part-time basis.
2)Requires any existing HOV lanes on these routes also to be
converted to part-time operation.
3)Requires Caltrans to report to the Legislature by January 1,
2018, on the impact to traffic by converting these HOV lane
segments to part-time operation.
4)Provides that, on or after May 1, 2017, if Caltrans determines
that part-time operation of these lanes has resulted in an
adverse impact on safety, traffic conditions, or the
environment, it may notify the Assembly Committee on
Transportation and the Senate Committee on Transportation and
Housing of its intent to reinstate the lanes to 24-hour
operation; thereafter, specifically authorizes Caltrans to
reinstate full-time operation of the HOV lanes.
5)Encourages Caltrans to introduce part-time operations on other
HOV lanes in Los Angeles County.
6)Makes provisions requiring the conversion of specific routes to
part-time HOV operation operative on July 1, 2016, and repeals
these same provisions 60 days after Caltrans notifies the
Legislature of its intent to reinstate the lanes to 24-hour
operation; requires Caltrans to post the date that the
Legislature receives the notice on the department's web site.
AB 210
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FISCAL EFFECT: According to the Assembly Appropriations
Committee, one-time special fund costs to Caltrans of around
$482,000 for sign replacement - 35 overhead signs at $10,000 each
and 132 ground- or barrier-mounted signs at $1,000 each. Similar
costs would be incurred if the HOV lanes had to be reverted back
to full-time operation. Costs for the legislative report are
minor and absorbable [State Highway Account].
COMMENTS: The primary purpose of an HOV lane is to increase the
total number of people moved through a congested corridor by
offering two kinds of incentives: a savings in travel time and a
reliable and predictable travel time. Because HOV lanes carry
vehicles with a higher number of occupants, they may move
significantly more people during congested periods, even when the
number of vehicles that use the HOV lane is lower than on the
adjoining general-purpose lanes.
State and regional transportation agencies are required to ensure
that federally supported highway and transit projects do not cause
new air quality violations, worsen existing violations, or delay
timely attainment of air quality standards. Consequently, when
transportation agencies identify a need to add highway capacity,
their options are limited. They often rely on the addition of HOV
lanes, which are generally considered a viable solution to adding
highway capacity in nonattainment areas - i.e., where air quality
is worse than the national ambient air quality standards.
In Northern California, HOV lanes are only operational Monday
through Friday during posted peak congestion hours, for example
between 6 a.m. to 10 a.m. and 3 p.m. to 7 p.m. All other vehicles
may use the lanes during off-peak hours. This is referred to as
"part-time" operation.
AB 210
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In Southern California, HOV lanes are generally separated from
other lanes by a buffer zone. HOV lanes are in effect 24 hours a
day, 7 days a week - referred to as "full-time" operation. (SR 14
is an exception. Previous legislation (AB 1871 (Runner), Chapter
337, Statutes of 2000) created a demonstration project to evaluate
part-time use of the HOV lanes on SR 14. Caltrans continues to
operate part-time HOV lanes on a portion of SR 14.)
The operational practices vary differently between northern
California versus southern California because of traffic volumes
and commuter patterns in the two regions. Northern California
highways usually experience two weekday congestion periods during
peak morning and afternoon commute hours, followed by a long
period of non-congestion. Full-time operation would leave the HOV
lane relatively unoccupied during off-peak hours and would not
constitute an 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 under these conditions is generally
considered infeasible.
HOV lanes work best where significant roadway congestion during
peak periods occurs. (Optimum HOV lane usage is generally
considered to be about 1,650 vehicles per hour. In contrast,
mixed-flow lanes are generally expected optimally to carry between
1,800 and 2,000 vehicles per hour.) Experience with HOV lanes
from around the country has shown a positive relationship between
ridership and travel time savings, suggesting that, as congestion
grows, the travelers' willingness to carpool or ride on a bus that
uses an HOV lane also grows.
Caltrans reports annually on the use of its HOV system. In its
2014 HOV report, Caltrans reported that the average peak-hour
volume in the SR 134 HOV lane was 1,157 vehicles, notably below
the optimum volume of 1,650 vehicles per hour. In the SR 210 HOV
lane, Caltrans reported the average peak-hour usage at 1,281
AB 210
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vehicles. Data for both highways indicate that the HOV lane usage
drops substantially after the 6 p.m. hour.
The author introduced this bill because "motorists who do not
qualify for the carpool lane are frequently caught in
bumper-to-bumper traffic at odd hours of the night while carpool
lanes may be underutilized. This bill would offer an opportunity
for flexibility, especially in areas where people drive the
freeways at all hours of the day."
Please see the policy committee analysis for a full discussion of
this bill.
Analysis Prepared by:
Janet Dawson / TRANS. / (916) 319-2093 FN:
0000613