HOV lanes

[Tacklewasher]

Damn. Now the RCMP are going to enforce the HOV lanes.

Yeah they are limiting the hours, but I liked it better when the whole thing was ignored.

http://www.castanet.net/edition/news-st ... htm#130165

"I know a lot of people have strong opinions on it but I think this is a good move. It's there from 7 a.m. during rush hour to move traffic through and expedite the RapidBus."

While the lanes are in effect, they can only be used by vehicles with two or more occupants, BC Transit and Handi-Dart buses, taxis, motorcycles and emergency vehicles.

The province says as part of the change, there will be increased enforcement of the HOV lanes by the RCMP.

[Atomoa]

They don't enforce it now when it's 24/7.

Does anyone think the RCMP will be out there at 6:58pm looking to tag you?

Insulting move. Harvey HOV is a parking lot all day long. It's made traffic congestion worse and traffic more dangerous. Either shift the HOV to the far left lane or get rid of it.

[dodgerdodge]

So how do they think this change will help anyone? Time of day restrictions may be an idea for morning/evening rush but ALL flipping day???? How is that really changing things, the new times mean we have them operational for 12 hours a day, the times of day when we are all out driving. How many cars are there out there before and after 7?

Most people seem to think they are a joke and many ignore them completely, this new timing thing will do nothing at all. IMO

[KL3-Something]

The change to the HOV lanes still makes them stupid.

[Captain Awesome]

I don't know how road enforcement works in Kelowna, but I'd imagine it's hard to nail anybody for abusing the HOV lane no matter if it's timed or not. Too many turns around, and anybody can simply say "Oh, I was going to turn right next block". Unless a police officer follows the guy in question for several blocks behind him across town, it's not easy to prove breaking the HOV rules.

Now, if it was a normal highway HOV lane, anybody who is caught in it not carrying passengers is automatically guilty - there are no turns on highways.

[omisimaw]

With traffic being as it is you have to get in the turn lane well before the block before the turn!

HOV lanes on this road are a joke, unnecessary ... joke is right, totally agree with that analogy

[Bpeep]

Even Walter Gray publicly said to the MOT that the hov lane should be scrapped. A typical example of one govt not listening to the other govt.

[dodgerdodge]

Thinking about these new regs the fact is that now all weekend long i can freely use the lane, but wait, i do anyway because if ever i am travelling up and down Harvey on the Weekend its with the wife in our car so perfectly ok anyways. However if i am travelling Monday to Friday i am most likely working so on my own. If i am driving a work truck its weight limit excludes it as well so really i have gained absolutely nothing from the new regulations and my guess is that counts for the vast majority.

[Tacklewasher]

Thinking about these new regs the fact is that now all weekend long i can freely use the lane, but wait, i do anyway because if ever i am travelling up and down Harvey on the Weekend its with the wife in our car so perfectly ok anyways. However if i am travelling Monday to Friday i am most likely working so on my own. If i am driving a work truck its weight limit excludes it as well so really i have gained absolutely nothing from the new regulations and my guess is that counts for the vast majority.

If the RCMP start policing it, then I have lost something. Even if it is just using the HOV for a few blocks when going out for lunch.

[GordonH]

Since I'm on the road to work before 7am then after work rarely if ever using the right lane. Not a big deal to me, this whole experiment with the HOV lane total waste of taxpayers money.


Added: before Gixxer calls me a left lane hog (lol), I use middle lane. Then just before turning left off Harvey I use the left lane.

[Poindexter]

It's a political thing, the city gets to tick the box that says HOV so it can be called 'green'.

Either shift the HOV to the far left lane or get rid of it.

Or ignore it. I've been using the HOV like any other lane since it was painted in place and have yet to even get skunk eye from another driver.

The only time it gets dangerous is when misguided mergers feel if they can't make it to the center lane right away they wont even turn onto Harvey and when they do they dart out of the HOV as though an alarm is going to go off if they're in for too long.

I do think most of us forget that Harvey was always a zoo and that there were people who would camp in the current HOV lane their entire drive because they have to turn right 5 miles up. This made it challenging to even get onto Harvey, I recall the wait to merge at Sutherland being 10 cars long all day. So the Current HOV lane was always a stop and start crappy way to commute so don't kid yourself that getting rid of the HOV lane will make it any better.

I'll wait and see about enforcement, until then it's three lanes each way.

[omisimaw]

Love it when they say RCMP will be enforcing the change. what they are hiring more enforcement officers for the highway section in Kelowna, but can't afford to hire more officers to police and enforce all of Kelowna!
Doubt there will be any more enforcement than there has been all along.
And what is with all the exceptions to the rule???? especially motorcycles... more appropriate to exempt those driving, illegally, with their disabled pass hanging from their rear view mirrors!
I hear you about Sutherland and the highway and then there is Kirschner just up the road.
What should be enforced more are those that block access and fail to allow people to merge back onto the highway!

[Atomoa]

Forum posters : local police have posted in multiple threads that it is their policy NOT to enforce it.

Hence the ridiculous nature of posting a news story on Castanet about "new rules for rules they don't enforce"

[Randall T]

This is just about the MOT not admitting the whole thing was an idiotic idea from the start and should be totally scrapped. Saving a scrap of face must be more important than traffic flow.

[kgcayenne]

I have always thought that the HOV lane was merely a ploy to get the highway upgraded through the city and never was intended to be enforced as an actual HOV lane. Besides, it is nearly impossible to change lanes if traffic is busy because nobody here understands the concept of yielding the right-of-way to somebody signaling a lane change. Therefore, getting into the right lane one block in advance of your right turn is the only sensible thing to do, because if you wait until 'that' block you just might not get in to the right lane to make your turn.