Here's the setup: Utah Department of Transportation (UDOT) builds high-occupancy vehicle (HOV) lanes from general tax funds. Then, under the guise to expedite traffic, single occupancy vehicles can buy into the lane at a variable fee determined by an electronic meter system that costs $40K a month to maintain while bringing in $38K in revenue. In addition, two Utah Highway Patrol (UHP) troopers are dedicated to catching people who cut in and don't pay. Future revenues are 'expected' to be higher to break even.
I thought the purpose of the HOV lane was to encourage car pooling and decrease single occupancy driving with corresponding reduction in pollution.
I suggest we return to the old system, no fees, no electronic metering system, and let the two UHP troopers return to doing traffic control and law enforcement. And let's add some adult supervision at UDOT to watch over the "whiz kids" and their computers.
David R. Shorten
Salt Lake City