In New Jersey, diamonds aren't forever.
On Monday, the state plans to open up diamond lanes, previously restricted to carpoolers, to all drivers, moving into the fast lane a debate over whether California should proceed with its multibillion-dollar plan to add hundreds of miles of carpool lanes to freeways.
In California, the diamond lane's glitter definitely is in the eye of the beholder.
Diamond lanes are strongly supported by the California Department of Transportation. Convinced that the lanes have prevented even worse congestion, Caltrans plans a substantial increase in the number of freeway carpool lanes.
But California foes of diamond lanes are taking heart from the New Jersey action.
Orange County, which has more diamond lanes per mile of freeway than any county in the state, has produced strong opposition from a county supervisor and a vocal citizens transportation group.
San Fernando Valley Assemblyman Tom McClintock (R-Northridge) plans to reintroduce a bill to study whether the lanes work and to declare a "diamond lane holiday."
"The moment any of these lanes is opened to all traffic, the difference is going to be so dramatic that their days will be numbered in California," said McClintock, whose bill to study the lanes sped through the Assembly but stalled in the Senate this year.
New Jersey is the first state to petition the federal government to forgive repayment of $240 million provided for construction of its carpool lanes.
A Federal Highway Administration spokeswoman said the agency is considering the request "mindful of the public policy implications that [it] has for [diamond lane-style] projects around the country."
Critics complain that space goes wasted in adjoining carpool lanes. And they wonder why, if the carpool lanes are so good, just 14.5% of Southern Californians share rides--a percentage that has remained virtually unchanged for years despite an assortment of incentives and messages on freeway signs like "Take a bus, Gus; share a ride, Clyde."
Caltrans officials say that carpool lanes remain one of the best strategies for keeping traffic flowing in the Los Angeles region, which recently was ranked No. 1 in the nation for traffic congestion--for the 15th year in a row.
In the 25 years since the first diamond lane opened in California on the San Bernardino Freeway, the state has become home to the nation's most extensive existing and proposed network of carpool lanes.
