
The agency said a few years ago there was a change in policy and insists, " almost 750 million is planned to go into future projects" and adds it has already set aside more than $165 million in reserves for two future projects. We are proud of our finances and transparency." Any assertion that toll revenues are not being thoughtfully invested for the public’s benefit is incorrect. In a statement, the OCTA wrote, "OCTA’s purchase of the 91 Express Lanes has directly resulted in the investment of nearly $2 billion to improve the regular 91 lanes and another $1 billion is planned over the next 20 years.
91 freeway express lanes motorcycles professional#
"Everything else is a fee or professional bureaucracy." "I want to know how much of that money is going to perpetuate a bureaucracy because the only thing on that list that I hear that is benefiting people is Caltrans maintenance road," Court said. The rest went to the California Highway Patrol, Caltrans maintenance, lease payments and violation processing fees. About a million a year also went just to credit card processing fees. Principal and repaying loans taken out to buy the lanes make up about $210 million.Īnother $283 million went to operating costs, which included $6 to 8 million a year to the company Cofiroute, USA to manage the lanes, the company was also one of the original investors. The agency, instead, tells us the biggest chunks of money have been spent in two categories. No one from the OCTA would go on camera, even though we asked numerous times over more than a month. The move let transportation officials get out of a non-compete clause that barred them from widening or improving the freeway. In 2003, state lawmakers cleared the way for the OCTA to buy the Express Lanes from the private company CPTC for just over $200 million. "That is scandalous and someone needs to be held accountable for where the money is going and how it' being used," said Jamie Court, of Consumer Watchdog, one of the state's most vocal consumer advocacy groups. She tells us she moved out of Orange County in 2003 with the understanding that leaders had a plan and congestion would improve, instead she says it's gotten worse. She says the money should be spent on "bettering the roads." That has Inland Empire resident Dianne Loch calling it highway robbery. Of that amount, only $46 million has gone back into improving the roads. His fees are just part of $860 million collected so far since 2003 on 10 miles of Express Lanes. Most of that money was collected in fees and penalties, but a small fraction came from interest payments, according to figures we obtained from the OCTA. And, get breaking news alerts in the FOX 11 News app. To see Honk online: /tag/honk.Get your top stories delivered daily! Sign up for FOX 11’s Fast 5 newsletter. To ask Honk questions, reach him at He only answers those that are published. Honkin’ fact: Each year, 100 or so mountain lions get struck by vehicles in California and die (Source: Tiffany Yap, a scientist and wildlife-corridor advocate for the nonprofit Center for Biological Diversity). In fairness, they are also charged with going after more troublesome offenses, such as drunks, speeders and distracted drivers. When Honk cruises into the offices of the Long Beach Press-Telegram, one of the newspapers he serves, the fine fellow endures the constant violations by truckers hauling trailers on the southbound 710 Freeway.ĬHP officers have discretion on when to cite violators. It is certainly annoying for others to suffer from this wrong-lane violation. When towing motorists are approaching, say, a freeway interchange, they are allowed to begin the transition early – so you might see them in a lane they otherwise aren’t supposed to be in.įor any vehicle towing a trailer, the speed limit is 55 mph and not the typical 65.
91 freeway express lanes motorcycles drivers#
When there are three lanes going the same way, those drivers must be in the far-right lane, although they can slide into the middle lane to pass. On freeways with four lanes going in the same direction, cars and trucks towing anything must be in the right two lanes, indeed. Maybe some of the trailer haulers will learn the rules of the road. Are these people just lucky there are no California Highway Patrol officers around? Thank you for taking the time to answer this. Has the California law changed? I thought it was only legal to tow trailers in the two right-most lanes. Honk: I have noticed lately numerous people pulling trailers in the fast lane (lane No. Inching into crosswalks won’t make the light turn green
