I thought we payed to use the roads already with taxes to build them.I think giveing the rich extra lanes isnt right. If we all payed to build them we should all get to use them not just the people with more means to pay.

I agree, we paid so much to build, improve and maintain the highways. We should be able to use them at any time. If they began charging for special lanes, there might be more traffic on the next lanes. Already HOV lanes are still sparse these days. There are surely other simple alternatives such as adding one or two more lanes (not 22 lanes which might be needed at the end of the century unless we adapt to other alternatives before then then vehicular traffic can revert to sparse lanes). There are other alternatives... building or clearing more alternative roads. Telecommuting should be encouraged as well as more flexible work schedules. Encourage drivers to work together to maintain the flow of traffic. Often drivers just want to move on and in a reasonable speed. Encourage drivers to stay to the left if they don't need lanes near the ramps. Drivers should be encouraged to take signals seriously and help keep the flows going.

I agree with the above e-mails and wish to add a statement. Why does it always come down to those who have money to make things easier get it?? An answer should be for everyone equally we pay for the road upkeep and should bet equal use of the roads. Things have already gotten harder for those who have a limited income to go down the road because the government will not do anything about the gas problem.

I agree with the above comments. Another question that I have is who is going to pay for the chips in the cars and how much is it going to cost to manage the accounts/invoicing for the HOT lanes?

I agree with the previous emails. If taxpayer money is use to build these HOT Lanes then they should not be limited only to those that can afford to use them. If a private company wishes to build them (and fund them) then it would be logical they would have the right to limit their use and pocket the profits.

With that said, my question is? "If the HOT Lane gets a high volume of people willing to pay, and it becomes congested to the point of being as slow as the standard lanes, what then? Is it's use going to be free? Who is going to eat the expense of building them when they are no longer a benefit to have?

I think it's illegal for the state to charge for use of lane space which has already been paid for by the citizens of this state. The state would be profiting from a state owned roadway. We paid for a HOV lane, it should stay as a HOV lane. The purpose is to reward those who carpool or ride buses, not the rich. I expect the state to be challenged in court with this, wasting millions in of state dollars.

The above posts just don't seem to get it. The system as it stands right now DOESN'T WORK. The new PILOT program is intended to try out a new idea to see what effects it might have and what benefits can be gained from it. If there's a way to "tax" the people who value the time-savings from a less congested commute, then why not try it? Instead of just whining that the rich are the only ones who would get to use it, how about we wait to see what the true impacts are? Maybe it will take more traffic out of the non-HOT lanes, put a little money in the coffer to expand the road system, and help in the long-run.

I wouldn't mind being part of the pilot, but I don't drive that highway very often. One thing that does concern is how does the system tell if I am driving solo or have a passenger (thus making the use of the HOV free). Another thing that bothers me is that I often see cars full of people in the non-HOV lanes, maybe if they used the HOV lanes, there would be less traffic in the non-HOV lanes.

Yes, traffic is heavy and at time slow, but the answer is NOT to charge to use a spceial lane. As stated above our taxes paid for the roads. We are paying for future improvments with part of the outrageous gasoline tax. More fees and taxes are not the answer. Better fiscal managment by the highway department is. The only way I would support a tax, not a charge to use the road, is if 100% of the tax went to build a convenient light rail system that went from Everett to Tacoma along the I-5 corridor and I405 as well.

There are other ways to handle our transportation problems that do not cater to the rich people in our society. Paying to avoid traffic isn't the answer, it's prejudicial. Everyone should have to follow the same rules. I'm am sick and tired of this governments willingness to give the rich special treatment while the rest of us must sit in the traffic. We need a mass transit alternative. Paying to use one special lane is not going to make much difference in the congestion of our freeways! Get it together Washington, let's build a light rail system from Everett to Tacoma, let's finally show we have some brains!

I have always thought they should just open up "all" the lanes to everyone, since there are people that should be drivingin the HOV lanes are aren't, and then I see car, after car of single drivers go by me in the HOV lane. Another problem on 167 is Freightliners and Dump-Trucks driving in the Middle, or regular left fast lane, rather than staying in the right "slower" lane. I thought it was illegal for them to drive in the fast lane. One solution that would really help would be to put "Express Lanes down the middle (where the garbage dump/grassy area is now, which would travel North in the morning, and then change and go South after 1:00 PM. This would be the one solution that might really work to clear up the congestion.

The main concern, here is congestion on the roadways. The HOV lanes were originally built to encourage three or more person carpooling. Then that was changed to two or more person carpooling to lessen traffic congestion. I am in a two person car pooling situation and each day going to and from work, I see several one person vehicles occupying the HOV lanes. These folks are breaking the law! The penalty is not stiff enough when and if they are caught. HOT lanes are not the answer. Proper transportation relief is the answer, whether it is more buses, light rail, more frequest commuter trains and more convenient commuter train stations. There is one in Seattle. Then you have to take a bus to get to your office if you are not lucky enough to work within walking distance of the train station. Make the alternatives affordable, make it convenient and they will come.

Anyone saying "illegal" should really investigate the facts before throwing the word around. I do not think anyone should have to pay a toll to use the HOV lanes. We've already paid for the lanes, why pay for access? We all choose where we work, live and when we leave for work and with that comes the consequence of having to sit in traffic. let's face it, there will only continue to be more people. So join a van pool. REPORT the violators in the carpool lane! I do it at least twice a week. They will only continue if they can get away with it. Just be sure to check for children as that's legal. Regardless, it should only be open for carpoolers, that was the wholepoint. WE SHOULD NOT HAVE TO PAY, WE ALREADY HAVE!

hell no!!!! we pay way too many taxes now why steal more money from our pockets!???!!!!!! thats my answer! NO!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

You people who claim "we shouldn't have to pay since our taxes have already paid for the roads" are totally missing the point. "Your" taxes paid for things like Safeco Field too, does that mean that you shouldn't have to pay to go see an M's game? No. If the money was going to go to pay for more fancy furniture in the governor's mansion then I would agree that the HOT fee is improper, but it's not. It's going to help pay for improvements to this not-so-fine system of transportation that we have. Those of you who don't get that must be resigned to the fact that you'll be sitting in gridlock for the next 20 years because the status quo AINT GONNA WORK!!!

I don't understand the point of having to pay to use the HOV or HOT lanes anyway. But please, let's be realistic about the fact that traffic is going to continue to get worse simply because of the number of drivers, new and old, that Washington state has. Unless we start using alternative methods of transportation when ever possible this issue will not be resolved and Seattle traffic will be along the same line as Los Angeles traffic, if it isn't there already.

Charging people to use the hotlane is a good Idea.(BUT). Soon they will find out that so many people will use it and the price will continually rise due to overuse. Then the only person who could afford to use it would be gates himself.
I do like the Idea on a previous comment of a closed express lane from kent to sumner. That grassy trash pile in the middle of the freeway could become of some use afterall. (support your local ecology youth core, throw your trash out the window). J/k. No onramps only offramps. Then the slowdowns caused by people merging could be lessend drastically.
The freeway is only a parking lot from 6AM to 6PM, so somehow if we encourage people to work night shift it would help alot as well.

I say go for the toll lane.. The sooner they try it out and find out it will not work the better. After all, it will only be a "trial" hehe. (i like the idea of 26 lanes.. hehe again..

This is what happens when WSDOT starts to think. Stupid ideas come out of their mouths! If anyone can screw this up it will be the WSDOT. Soon people would have to take out loans to pay their toll fees...errors would occur showing instead of 2.50 owned its shows 250.00! yips!
Its time to create a transit system that serves all I repeat ALL the Public...rails systems that run from olmpia to Marysville on Hwy 5 and from Renton to Alderwood mall area on Hwy 405 and east and west from seattle to Carnation on Hwy 90. Do that create park and rides along the rail system and we get vehicles off the roads...

Once again it's the have's taking from the have not's or have little's. The state (DOT) has allowed the roads of this state to be both in sorry repair and to reach a point of "Grid-Lock". WE lack a long range plan to expand our road system to meet the needs of the 21st century. That being said this new option of charging everyone to use the HOV lane is another example of a poor short range plan to "fix" the problem.Hey folks,the problem is those that are in place making these poor plans ! Perhaps the time is right to get some people into the DOT that have a vision for the future.The roads were bought/paid for by everyone...Charging the common people to use the roads that they paid for is simply wrong !

There is a solution to help traffic now! It has been here all the time. Everybody that can carpool or vanpool should do so. There are too many cars for the roads!

If WSDOT wants to build a brand new lane and call it a HOT lane, I'll be happy to pay a toll. But I'm not paying to use a lane that I've already paid to use!

As for the arguement about paying to use Safeco field... Safeco was built with the understanding that a entrance fee would be charged to pay for it.

I'm having a little trouble wrapping my mind around all of this. I agree with most of what I've read. It's a test. We try it. If it fails, we live and learn and move on to the next thing. If it works. Great! But they aren't real clear on how it will really work. Will the chips be something that will begin showing up in new cars or something that we must add to our windshield? Are they going to have the "CHIP Police" standing by to usher us back out of the HOT lane if that chip isn't detected? Once you enter the lane, is it one flat fee or is it calculated by how long you are actually in the lane? How do they know if your drving alone, or with others? What if you share your car with someone? How do they bill the right person? Does a parent driving with their kids in the back seat count as a carpool? And what is the cost differnce between setting up all of these sensors to be able to bill these people, and actually adding a couple of extra lanes? Has anyone considered 2 HOV lanes? How on earth do you plan to actually collect the fee's from these people?

HAHA! With all the well off people in washington that lane would be just as backed up as the other ones. It wouldnt serve its purpose very well.
Whats the point of communting with two people, i thought we were trying to save gas and the eco system... Not get to work an extra 5 mintues early.

I support the HOT lane concept. It's already worked well in California, and studies have shown that it's used much more by the middle class than the rich. Really rich people don't need to be somewhere at a certain time as much as the middle class do. Also, the idea behind variable tolls is to try to even out traffic somewhat by giving people an incentive to use the lanes at less congested times.

Since traffic continues to get worse and, for whatever reason, light rail is still an insanely long way off, perhaps it is time to provide businesses incentives to let more employees telecommute - whether it be for a portion of each day or for a certain number of days per week. There are many, many jobs that could be set up for telecommuting without too much pain. If fewer people were required to be physically in offices between specific hours, there would be less of a "rush hour" because people could adjust their in-office hours as needed. And the need for extra lanes, extra surcharges or extra bottles of Tylonol would be downsized dramatically.

I think thats a great idea! It has nothing to do with benefitting the rich. I spend 1 hr and 45 minutes to over 2 hours each way, every day commuting. Not to mention my job entails driving all day between cities, so light rail is out of the question. If I can save 30 minutes each way in commute time, I could actually work an hour longer and make more than the cost to pay for the lane's use or get home earlier than 7:00pm to spend time with my family. Our traffic has gotten so bad over the past 10 years that something needs to be done.

Just another way to let those that happen to be rich pay to get around the fustration that us non-rich people have to deal with. Setting a real good example by showing if you're rich, you can get anything you want...only if your rich. This then clogs the lane for true carpoolers...used to live in SD where this is being tried and of course, just BMW's and Jag's with one person in them using this lane and slowing down the carpoolers. Their contributing to this traffic so they should have to suffer with the rest of us or start carpooling themselves, make them change their ways rather than paying to "hide" them.

This is double taxation. I pay gas tax whenever I fill my tanks and to discriminate against me because I drive alone (by necessity / business) is not right. The idea is good, but it is extremely unfair. The HOV lanes were made for car pooling, not as a form to give people the "right" to drive in them if they are willing to pay double taxes. This program discriminates against the poor and those who do not believe double taxation is right and awards the rich or those who do not care about their constitutional rights.

As it is, when I drive alone I pay more taxes per mile traveled than an HOV vehicle occupant so why should I have to pay once again to use a HOT lane my taxes already pay more than my share for???

My tax money already paid for the HOV lanes I rarely have the opportunity to use, so why should I be the one to foot the repairs and maintanance of those lanes for single occupant vehicles who's drivers opt to pay even more taxes???

I believe the HOT lanes are illegal under the double taxation laws. Washington already has the highest gas tax of any other state and the HOT lanes discriminate.

>>>You people who claim "we shouldn't have to pay since our taxes have already paid for the roads" are totally missing the point. "Your" taxes paid for things like Safeco Field too, does that mean that you shouldn't have to pay to go see an M's game?<<<

If some tax payers were allowed to see the game for one price and others had to pay double for the same seats, then it would be the same thing --- safeco field may have been paid for with tax money (against the peoples' wishes if you remember) but it is an income producer and helps the economy. Roads were built for public use and not just those who pay more for them. Your justification could be carried further to justify illegal stops and searches by the government too (like they do at the ballgames) or only permit road use by certain "acceptable" groups of people.

When the state asks for tax increases, they do so by stating what they are for. We decided to build HOV lanes for carpoolers - not for the rich single occupant drivers.

Ballgames are optional, it is a right to be able to travel on public roads. This is a stupid experiment because it will mean less people will carppol if they are able to pay more and use the HOV/HOT lanes. This will increase traffic and congestion, not reduce it.

It's common knowledge that HOV lanes tend to be Democratic in nature, asking us to act in community with our co-workers and neighbors, while the more Republican toll lanes seek to sell the freedom to act without regard for anyone's interest but ones own at a fair price set by free market. But let's take a really good, up-close, well-lit look at how that works in the real world.

In the real world, HOV lanes offer relief to the financially unencumbered working class in exchange for a portion of their freedom to act independently, which is, oddly enough, the same freedom that toll lanes seek to sell. And the benefit HOV lanes offer is delivered in the form of an easier trip to a workday that starts with those who need to be in early, ends with who have to stay late and keeps the exits blocked to help simplify your schedule.

It doesn't take a rocket scientist to see that in the real world HOV lanes and toll lanes act together to further empower the moneyed class while forcing the rest of us to either carpool up and get to work or be deadlocked in the "free" lanes with the other unemployed fools.

If you want to start a class war, build a bunch of toll lanes and start selling Lexus drivers the diplomatic immunity they think they already have. The fact is, if you really want to fix the freeways, stop adding lanes of any sort. Capacity's not the solution, it's the cause.

If you really want to fix the freeways, just make it easier to get off of the darn things. Traffic backs up because freeways can dump cars into the suburbs faster than suburbs can absorb them.

OK. I'm done. Next?