HIGH-OCCUPANCY ROUTES AND TRUCK LANES. IN: HANDBOOK OF TRANSPORT SYSTEMS AND TRAFFIC CONTROL

This paper provides an overview of two types of special vehicle lanes: high-occupancy vehicle (HOV) and lanes. HOV facilities are most widespread in North America, with HOV open to private car pools, van pools, motorcycles and public buses. In other countries, including Great Britain, the emphasis is on bus lanes, with usage often extended to taxis, emergency vehicles, cyclists and disabled drivers. HOV facilities should increase the person movement efficiency of a travel corridor, thus positively impacting congestion, bus service reliability and emissions. HOV are generally expanding in the United States, although a drop in U.S. carpooling has led several states to question the effectiveness of HOV lanes. Truck are very different than HOV lanes, with the term truck lanes being used to describe a situation where trucks are restricted to a certain lane but other traffic is permitted to use these as well. Truck can be justified by the improvement of traffic flow, reduced accident rates, public pressure and pavement wear. However, there are important concerns regarding the impact on safety, since restricting trucks to particular can produce a continuous stream of trucks in the slow lanes, making it difficult for passenger vehicles to exit the highway. The increased differential between and passenger vehicle speeds that results from is another negative safety factor. It is advisable, therefore, to assess any plan to introduce using a cost-benefit approach. One innovative approach would be to allow trucks to use HOV lanes. This would recognize the economic benefits of efficient freight transport while using up some of the excess capacity often found in HOV lanes.