Houston Babies
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HOV lane
Do you ride in the HOV with your child. I did today since it just say 2+ passengers -- doesn't say anything about adults. But I was worried that they wouldn't see anyone in the front seat and I'd get a ticket. I never break the rules, but I wasn't sure if I was breaking them or not. Thoughts?
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Re: HOV lane
Good, I don't feel so alone now!
Absolutely not! The general purpose of the HOV (unless you're in the pay lane) is to take cars off the road. My child won't be driving for another 15 years.
(we've had this debate on here before, so I could pretty much post responses to every comeback in this post, but I haven't had my coffee yet).
I absolutely agree with this. I cheated once and used it and felt like a rotten rule breaker for days.
I don't use them, but that's because I can't figure out how to get on them and what times they operate in what directions. Another perk to living in the loop, they just aren't that necessary
Now give me an HOV lane up and down Heights or Studemont...
j+k+m+e | running with needles
This, exactly. Not to mention the hassle it provides officers who are policing the area.
So Tasty, So Yummy
So by this logic, you should only use the HOV if there are other licensed drivers in your car who technically can drive themselves, no matter their age? Even if it's your grandma who's too old to drive herself?
Also, single-rider motorcycles are permitted on the HOV, so should I feel guilty riding my bike in it w/o a passenger? Since the goal is to encourage people to carpool?
Seems we're splitting hairs here, but I missed out on the prior debate.
The point is to also cut down on emissions, which is why motorcycles are allowed. I also think hybrids should be allowed as well, regardless of capacity. If your grandmother wouldn't be on the road normally, then you're violating the spirit of the law, if not the letter of it.
j+k+m+e | running with needles
I'll agree with spirit of the law, but not letter, as passengers are referred to as "occupants" and "required number of people in vehicle" (link). Many types of passengers fall into these categories, including children and others w/o a valid driver's license. If they wanted only people who could drive themselves legally, they'd say so.
I'll defect further and say that I wish more people with kids in the car WOULD take the HOV and reduce congestion in the mainlanes.
Several states allow hybrids in the HOV lane, either with a sticker system or not. I really like that idea and wish Texas would adopt it.
It's not splitting hairs, the HOV lane is in place to reduce vehicular emissions off the road by taking a vehicle that would normally be on the road off of it. Having a kid in the back of the car does not acheive the purpose of the law.
So Tasty, So Yummy
Its goal is also not to reduce traffic in the main lanes. It's silly to expect people to take the HOV to make your commute easier. It is a reward for people who carpool or drive lower emission vehicles.
As for the whole "but what about the person who never got a license/mom who is too scared to drive on freeways/person who is physically or mentally unable to drive" argument--none of these people are going to get a dirty glare from me or cause a second thought to the police officer monitoring the lanes. We can't tell from looking at the adult that there's a reason they're not driving their own car.
The back windows in my station wagon are tinted pretty darkly, so it is unlikely that one would see that I had a kid in the back. If I saw my car driving down the HOV with just a driver in it I would automatically assume they were breaking the law.
Well if we're supposed to live up to the spirit of the law, then I've never been in the HOV in the spirit of the law. I drive with others in the car because I want to ride with them or because they need a lift, not to keep another car off the road.
Butts in seats is all that matters to keep within the letter of the law, and that's all I think about when I get on.
If a cop can't see my kids in their carseats, then he'll pull me over. That's fine, it's what he's supposed to do. When he sees that I have 2 kids with me, I assume he'll just wave me on since I can ride in the HOV legally.
The Metro website states the following here under the RideShare heading: "METRO's network of HOV lanes is used to bypass congestion and allow commuters to get to work or home faster."
A carpool (actually car pool according to Merriam-Webster) is defined as a group of people who commute together by car. Children are people, no?
I was a carpooler in the HOV before I became a full-time remote employee. My husband drives a vanpool for his office. None of the other carpoolers we've ever ridden with, other than the two of us, did it as part of a "green" lifestyle; they did it for totally selfish reasons - the biggest one was to save money on their commuting costs when gas prices went up because they drove vehicles with terrible fuel economy. His vanpool can't even use the HOV b/c they work off the beltway, so no reward there.
I'd rather see as many vehicles as will qualify on the HOV, since green space was paved over in several places for its creation, and especially since they plan to pave over MORE green space to extend the one on 45N through Conroe to Madisonville.
I can't emphasize text in chrome, but this only supports my statement. "bypass congestion" implies that the main lanes are congested. By "traffic" I mean the bad kind that everyone in Houston complains about. Not the actual number of cars.
Pardon my lack of a space. As for the "nobody does it for green reasons." I would agree that the majority do it for ease and to save money. Especially here in Houston where most people don't think twice about the role vehicle emissions play in bad air quality days during the summer.
I, too, would like to see more vehicle in the HOV, but again, I'd prefer that they are vehicles that actually furthered the goals of the HOV. Putting aside the LEVs, those are vehicles whose use means that one or more cars aren't on the road. Not just moms rushing to get to gymboree.
Now there is one situation that wouldn't bother me: a mom driving a carpool full of kids. (hmm, here I suppose you could argue that it is my friend from HS who has 6 kids and they're not taking a car off the road, but I mean traditional carpool where moms take turns driving the kids to school).
Like other things, this is my opinion. Obviously I cannot call and report you because you are not breaking the law. The OP asked if others drove in the HOV with their kids. I do not, and I explained why not, and why I wish the law did not allow it.
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You are welcome!
And @melrrr, sorry to get all "guns a-blazin'" on you, I didn't mean to be ugly. Arguing a point into the ground is something I'm working on.
She put in to words exactly what I was thinking....and saved me the trouble! (and she wasn't at all nasty about it)
WOW! I really didn't expect so many responses, I simply posted because I really wasn't sure.
Thanks for your responses Amyt, very well said