By Cornelius Nunev


Solo motorists in California can now make use of the HOV lanes -- or, the so-called "carpool lanes" -- if they are driving a professional clean option fuel automobile. The program is set to expire in two years, but not if some lawmakers have their way.

HOV lanes accessible to all

It is a lot faster getting to work whenever you can drive in an HOV lane. These have been accessible to motorists since Jan 1, 2013. The only issue is that you have to drive a hydrogen fuel cell, plug-in hybrid, compressed natural fuel or electric vehicle.

CBS reports that Steve Pinkard loves the lane because it saves him time and money in his CNG vehicle.

The HOV lane program was originally started to help reduce congestion, and also to lower pollution through ride-sharing. It was determined that solo clean vehicle motorists also qualify -- at least for now -- by meeting the second criteria, and reducing harmful emissions in the air.

A similar, earlier program authorized single motorists of hybrid vehicles to use the HOV lanes. That program is now expired, but it is believed to have helped drive the wider adoption of hybrid vehicles within the state. It is hoped that the brand new program will do the same for zero-emissions vehicles.

The white and the green

The number of white stickers released is unlimited, but it is issued for all vehicles that have zero-emissions. There are official stickers out there for qualifying automobiles such as the Nissan Leaf and Ford Focus, and white means they have no emissions. All natural fuel, hydrogen fuel and electric vehicles qualify.

There were already 9,000 green stickers released at the beginning of the year despite the truth that only 40,000 will be issued total. The green sticker is for vehicles such as the Chevy volt and Toyota Prius Plug-in that are plug-in hybrids.

there are no yellow or gold stickers anymore since the expired last year.

Some legislators want to expand program

The program had been set to expire on January 1, 2015. But a new bill has been introduced in the California Assembly by Assembly Member Bob Blumenfield (D), calling to extend the program until the start of 2025.

Discovering if you qualify

At Drive Clean you can find a list of other local incentives for clean air automobiles. You can also get help finding out if a vehicle qualifies by calling or going to the California Air Source Board website.




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