Project Information
For over 30 years, transportation professionals and policy-makers have supported HOV lanes as an effective means of increasing the person-carrying capacity of roadways. It was generally accepted that this capacity increase was achieved by providing incentives for travelers to use transit or carpool. However, extensive monitoring of HOV lanes was rarely done to evaluate the benefits and impacts of these new facilities.
Recently, the effectiveness of HOV lanes has been increasingly questioned in many parts of the country. In some areas HOV lanes have been removed due to real or perceived under-utilization. It has become evident that for HOV lane programs to expand or continue, data must be collected and evaluated on an ongoing basis to substantiate their performance.
The Board of Directors of the Los Angeles County Metropolitan Transportation Authority (Metro) has taken a leadership role in recognizing the need to evaluate the performance of the County's HOV system. Metro has committed the funding necessary to conduct a robust, comprehensive evaluation of the Los Angeles County HOV system. The project, called the HOV Performance Program, will build on Caltrans HOV data collection and monitoring efforts in Los Angeles County to develop a more comprehensive and analytical approach for utilizing the existing data to evaluate HOV system performance.
Project Objectives
With 380 lane miles of HOV lanes in 14 different freeway corridors, Los Angeles County has one of the most extensive HOV systems in the country. With such a significant investment in HOV facilities, comprehensive monitoring and evaluation of the systems performance is critical for knowledgeable policy decision-making.
Consequently, the objective of this project is to develop a comprehensive monitoring and evaluation program for the Los Angeles County HOV system. The HOV Performance Program will build on the HOV data collection and monitoring efforts of Caltrans District 7 to implement a program to assure the compilation and presentation of appropriate HOV performance data. The project will measure the impact of HOV facilities against HOV program goals and objectives. The project will also detail what steps need to be taken to increase the productivity of the County's HOV lanes. With this new information about HOV performance, Metro Board of Directors can make more informed decisions regarding HOV investments and changes in operational policies.
The main objectives for the project are as follows:
- Enhance existing HOV data collection procedures.
- Develop a user friendly data management program, linked to primary data sources, for automated updates.
- Analyze the travel impacts and user benefits of the HOV system.
- Provide policy-makers with information to enable them to make decisions about the future of HOV facilities.
- Sustain, market, and promote user and non-user acceptance of the HOV system.
- Develop policy recommendations for future HOV operations and investments.
Project Study Area
The project study area includes the following facilities:
- 21 existing HOV segments in the 14 operational HOV freeway corridors in LA County.
- Future HOV freeway segments (to be completed within the next 5 years).
- 2 freeway segments where HOV facilities are not operational or planned.
View Metro HOV Development Status Map
Project Flow & Schedule
The Project Flow and Schedule chart shows major project tasks and the approximate timeframe for completing these tasks. The estimated completion date for the HOV Performance Program is October 2001.
Project Tasks:
1. Evaluation Plan: Develop a plan to provide procedural guidance for assessing freeway HOV system performance, including proposed goals and objectives for the HOV system and Measures of Effectiveness for all current and future HOV projects.
2. Data Management Program: Develop a program to establish the basis for electronic storage, analysis and reporting of the travel data, including the tools to easily transfer data into maps.
3. Travel Data Collection: Compile a variety of data, including travel time, vehicle counts, vehicle occupancy and safety and accident statistics, with data primarily being derived from the extensive HOV data collection and monitoring activities currently conducted by Caltrans District 7.
4. Market Research: Determine the level of support for HOV facilities through telephone surveys, license plate mail-back questionnaires, transit rider surveys and focus group discussions.
5. Data Analysis: Examine the characteristics of HOV lanes and evaluate the performance of HOV lanes in four areas:
- Mobility & Accessibility
- Air Quality & Fuel Consumption
- Safety & Accidents
- Cost Effectiveness
6. Policy Recommendations: Develop a prioritized set of short-term and long-term policy recommendations to guide future operation and investment decisions.
Project Team
View theProject Organization chart
Lead Agency
- Los Angeles County Metropolitan Transportation Authority (Metro)
Key Participant
- California Department of Transportation (Caltrans) - District 7
Project Team
- Parsons Brinckerhoff
- Kaku Associates, Inc.
- Texas Transportation Institute
- Strategic Consulting and Research
- Heidi Stamm Public Affairs
Project Advisory Team
The Project Advisory Team (PAT) is composed of stakeholders and meets on a monthly basis to provide technical and policy guidance to the project team.
Stakeholders include:
- Metro
- Caltrans -District 7
- Southern California Association of Governments (SCAG)
- South Coast Air Quality Management District (SCAQMD)
- California Air resources Board (ARB)
- California Highway Patrol
- Local cities, transit, academia and environmental agencies
Peer Review Panel
An important aspect of this project is the Peer Review Panel (PRP), which provides an ongoing independent review of the project. The panel is composed of a diverse group of technical experts who will share their experience in HOV planning and operations while offering unbiased input, guidance, and technical objectivity. Panel members come from all over the country, including:
- Massachusetts Highway Department (MassHighway)
- Washington State Department of Transportation (WSDOT)
- New York State Department of Transportation (NYSDOT)
- California Polytechnic State University, San Luis Obispo
- San Diego Metropolitan Transit Development Board
- Dallas Area Rapid Transit