HOT Lanes Heat Up: Express Lane Bill Moves in Legislature

July 16, 2009, Update

Passing a major milestone, Assembly Bill 744 (Torrico, D-Fremont) – which authorizes the creation of an 800-mile Express Lane Network on Bay Area freeways – was approved today by the Senate Transportation and Housing Committee. The bill now moves to the Senate Appropriations Committee, and if it passes, to the Senate floor.

June 3, 2009, Update

Assembly Majority Leader Alberto Torrico’s bill to create a Bay Area express lane network that would give solo drivers the option of paying a toll to use lanes in which carpools and buses travel for free passed the state Assembly today 58 to 18 with bipartisan support. AB 744 authorizes the Bay Area Toll Authority to administer and operate the 800-mile express lane network within the nine-county Bay Area region. The bill now heads to the state Senate.

• Torrico Regional Express Lanes Bill Gains Approval In State Assembly

April 28, 2009, Sacramento ... MTC and its Bay Area Toll Authority (BATA) affiliate are applauding yesterday's passage by the Assembly Transportation Committee of Assembly Bill 744 (Torrico, D-Fremont). MTC sponsored the bill, which would authorize BATA to create an 800-mile Express Lane Network on Bay Area freeways. The vote was 12 to 1 in favor of the bill.

Also called HOT lanes — for high-occupancy/toll lanes — the free-flowing express lanes would be available to carpools and vanpools as well as to non-carpools willing to pay a fee for the opportunity to bypass traffic.

MTC's recently adopted Transportation 2035 Plan identifies HOT/express lanes as a key strategy for managing traffic congestion in the Bay Area as well as for generating revenues to fund expess bus service and enhancements to rail service along the express-lane corridors. Existing state legislation permits the development of a handful of express lanes in the Bay Area, two of which are now under construction -- on Interstates 580 and 680. The new bill would extend the express-lane network regionwide.

Responsibilty for overseeing development and operation of the express-lane network would fall on MTC's BATA affliliate, which runs the FasTrak® electronic toll collection system already in operation on Bay Area bridges. BATA would collect the tolls, which would vary according to the time of day and congestion levels.

The bill now moves to the Assembly Appropriations Committee, and if it passes, to the Assembly floor before heading for consideration in the state Senate.