Cheating brazen in new toll lanes

BY BRADEN CARTWRIGHT
Daily Post Staff Writer

Cheating is rampant for drivers getting a carpool discount in Highway 101’s new toll lanes, according to transit advocates.

That’s because drivers self-report how many passengers they have on their FasTrak devices. They get a 50% discount for one passenger and no toll for two passengers.

A study found that 46% of drivers reported two passengers last year.

“Is everybody telling the truth? We’re not sure,” Program Director Kim Comstock told the San Mateo County Transportation Authority on Thursday.

Comstock said the agency should look at technology to verify passenger numbers and more enforcement.

The agency’s board reviewed a study on Tuesday on how the toll lanes are working in San Mateo County, from the Palo Alto border to Interstate 380.

The board will use the study to decide whether toll lanes should be expanded.

The study found that average speeds increased by 7 to 13 mph from 2018 to 2024 for drivers in the toll lanes, and average speeds increased by 1 to 7 mph for everyone else.

“The express lanes are functioning as intended,” consultant Liz Justison told the agency’s board.

But East Palo Alto Councilman Carlos Romero said the results  are questionable because speeds were compared to before the pandemic, when the freeway was narrower and more people commuted to work. 

Data questioned

Romero wants to review the data assuming that some of the carpooling drivers were in fact driving alone. He also said the UC-Davis Institute of Transportation Studies should take a second look at the study.

“It’s a little unclear. It’s a little dirty,” Romero said.

Starting in February 2019, the agency converted seven miles of carpool-only lanes into toll lanes from University Avenue to Whipple Avenue. The agency started charging tolls in March 2022.

The agency added 15 miles of toll lanes from Whipple Avenue to Interstate 380 that went online in March 2023.

San Mateo resident Mike Swire said the faster traffic on Highway 101 is because of the new lane, not the tolls.

“The conclusions are simply unreliable,” Belmont resident Giuliano Carlini said on Thursday.

VTA has built its own toll lanes through Mountain View and Palo Alto.

Tolls adjust depending on traffic. The toll was less than $3 for two-thirds of drivers and more than $12 for 6% of drivers in the last three months of 2023, according to an agency report.

A Bay Area freeway study by the Metropolitan Transportation Commission has suggested that all lanes could be toll lanes by 2050.

“The study identified two potential pathways for further examination: first, all-lane, per-mile tolling on all freeways during peak weekday driving hours; and second, a regional, mileage-based, all-hours user fee for all Bay Area roads,” the freeway study said.