Is a Baby Considered a Passenger for Hov Lane *youtube*

High Occupancy Vehicle (HOV) lanes help move more than people on Ontario's busiest highways. They are restricted to certain types of vehicles conveying at least 2 people. Make sure you know and follow the rules for entering and exiting HOV lanes.

Locations

Ontario has HOV lanes on Highways 400, 401, 403, 404, 410, 417, 427 and the QEW. To find them, look for:

• HOV signs marking the far left lane.
• Markers painted on the road, including diamond markers and a striped buffer zone that separates the HOV lane from other lanes.

Find the locations of HOV lanes on the interactive map.

Using HOV lanes

You tin can use an HOV lane if you have at to the lowest degree two people (including the driver) in one of these vehicles :

• cars
• vans or light trucks
• commercial trucks less than 6.five metres long with a gross weight of 4,500kg or less.

If you are towing a trailer, you can still employ the HOV lane if the combined vehicle-trailer length is less than 6.5 metres.

The following vehicles have unrestricted admission to HOV lanes, no matter how many passengers they are conveying :

• buses of all types
• licensed taxis and airport limousines
• emergency vehicles
• vehicles with Ontario green licence plates
• motorcycles

The penalty for improper HOV lane use is a fine of $110 and iii demerit points.

Inbound and exiting HOV lanes on Highways 401, 403, 404, 410, 417, 427 and the QEW

You can enter and leave the HOV lane only at designated points. These points are about 400 metres long and are generally available every 2-four kilometres. They are clearly marked past signs, white broken lines and diamond pavement markings. It is illegal and dangerous to enter or exit an HOV lane by crossing the striped buffer zone.

In one case an HOV lane ends, other traffic is complimentary to movement over into the left about lane when information technology is safe.

Enter HOV lanes

HOV lanes oft start when a new left lane is added to a highway. You lot will see overhead signs on the left side of the highway that show where the lane begins. Simply move into the left lane beyond the white cleaved lines.

In some cases, an existing left lane has been turned into an HOV lane. Only drivers allowed to apply the HOV lane can stay in that lane. All others must exit before the HOV lane begins. You will see warning signs overhead before the HOV lane begins.

Leave HOV lanes

HOV lane users must use the proper exits. Sentry for the warning signs and leave the HOV lane before you need to leave the highway. Leave the HOV lane at the upcoming exit zone for this highway exit ramp :

Leave the HOV lane at this exit zone for this highway exit ramp :

A few highway exits do not take an HOV exit. In these cases, you will see a alert sign:

Inbound and exiting HOV lanes on Highways 400

HOV lanes on Highway 400 between Major Mackenzie Bulldoze and Rex Road have a dedicated transfer lane between the HOV lane and the regular lanes. Drivers can use this transfer lane to increase or decrease their speed earlier merging in or out of the HOV lanes on Highway 400.

Benefits of HOV Lanes

HOV lanes assist move more people faster on Ontario'southward highways past encouraging people to carpool and take transit. This is important during peak travel times when other lanes can exist slow and congested.

Benefits to you

• Save time : Yous tin avoid congestion and arrive at your destination more than quickly than those who don't carpool.
• More than reliable commute : Avoiding congestion means a quicker and more consistent commute time.
• Save coin : It costs less to ride a bus or to share a ride than to bulldoze alone every day. Regular carpooling could your cut fuel costs by 50%.
• Conserve fuel : You waste matter less fuel than sitting in traffic.
• Less stress : Letting someone else drive – or taking turns – gives you a take chances to relax on the drive to work.

Benefits to Ontario

• Manage congestion : An HOV lane tin can handle a lot of growth in need. Once a general traffic lane reaches capacity, it becomes congested and moves fewer vehicles.
• Make better use of infrastructure : One highway lane can carry one,500 to 2,200 vehicles each hour. A lane full of buses and carpools moves many more people than a standard traffic lane.
• Transit priority : Buses and transit rider have priority. A single transit double-decker tin replace 57 single-occupant cars!
• Provide choices : HOV lanes make carpooling and public transit more effective and reliable choices for commuters.
• Support mobility : Taxis and aerodrome limousines that utilize HOV lanes can return to duty faster after dropping off a fare or make it sooner to pick up a fare.
• Support electric vehicles : Vehicles with Ontario green licence plates are immune on all provincial HOV lanes - even with just i person in the vehicle.

Oftentimes Asked Questions

Q1: How are HOV lanes enforced?

Ontario Provincial Police (OPP) officers are enforcing HOV lane use and issuing tickets to offenders every bit role of their regular highway enforcement duties. The OPP conducts HOV lane enforcement by pulling vehicles over on the left shoulder.

HOV lane design on provincial highways includes enforcement pockets on the left shoulder to let enforcement officers to closely monitor HOV lane use.

Q2: Why are HOV lanes on provincial highways separated from general traffic by a buffer zone instead of a concrete bulwark?

Ontario's HOV lanes have been designed to a high safety standard, based on the proven best practices from over 30 years of HOV performance in other jurisdictions.

Many of our highway corridors take limited rights-of-mode. A barrier-separated HOV lane would reduce the widths of our highway shoulders, enforcement areas and lanes and would brand it much more difficult to remove snow.

Using a painted buffer zone to separate HOV lanes from general traffic lanes also permits a greater number of entry and leave locations forth the highway than a concrete barrier. Carpools can savor the convenience of HOV lanes and nevertheless have access to their desired exit along the mode. The painted buffer permits entry and exit locations to be more quickly adapted to respond to changes in traffic patterns and volumes.

Q3: What is the condom record of HOV lanes?

Ontario's HOV lanes accept been designed to the highest safety standard, based on over xxx years of feel in other jurisdictions with HOV facilities. Ontario's HOV pattern includes a buffer separating the HOV lane from the general traffic lane, lane widths to ministry standards and a left shoulder, for optimum rubber.

Poor prophylactic records of some HOV facilities in other jurisdictions are a result of adding an HOV lane where the existing roadway cannot accommodate a buffer zone, acceptable widths for the general traffic and HOV lanes and/or a left shoulder. The result is a greater likelihood of collisions and reduced driver manoeuvrability.

Ontario's provincial HOV lanes have been added to existing highways by widening the highway, rather than converting existing lanes or shoulders.

Q4: Are HOV lanes constructive?

Yes. Though results vary from place to identify, nearly every area with highway HOV lanes reports that ridesharing and highway capacity take increased, and that travel times have improved since the lanes opened.

In that location are over 130HOV programs operating in more than 30 North American cities, totalling over 4,000 kilometres. Many large cities in the U.Due south. take operated HOV lanes for thirty years. HOV lanes are popular with commuters in states such as Texas and California, and in cities such equally Washington, D.C., Atlanta, Denver, and Seattle.

In Canada, in that location are HOV lanes in Vancouver, and in the Montreal surface area, and some Ottawa bridges accept HOV lanes.

Q5: Why do HOV lanes use the left lane on highways?

HOV lanes on 400-serial highways are intended to serve multi-occupant vehicles, including inter-regional buses, moving at highway speeds and making longer-altitude trips.

It is safer to locate a highway HOV lane on the left to minimize weaving and lane alter interactions with the full general traffic lanes. Most interchange access is located on the right side of the highway, and then it is safest and most practical to locate the HOV lane in the left lane.

Q6: How are HOV lanes on provincial highways different from municipal HOV lanes?

Provincial HOV lanes are located on the inside (leftmost) lane of highways, while municipal lanes are typically the curbside (rightmost) lane.

Municipal HOV lanes operate in a dissimilar environs than provincial highway HOV lanes (eastward.g. allowing vehicles to make frequent stops).

Q7: Why aren't HOV lanes open to all traffic outside blitz hours?

HOV lanes are used to provide carpoolers and transit users with a reliable trip time at all hours of the day, allowing them to avoid periodic congestion. Opening HOV lanes to all traffic outside of rush hours would reduce the effectiveness of the HOV lanes which is meant to provide more reliable trip times.

Recommended for you

• Ontario road maps
• Traffic reports
• Dark-green licence plates

Useful resources for Capooling

• Locate MTO carpool parking lots on TRIP
• See a listing of all MTO carpool parking lots

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Source: http://www.mto.gov.on.ca/english/ontario-511/hov-lanes.shtml

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