Changing lanes

Re “Unclogging carpool lanes is a priority,” Sept. 12

To increase speed in carpool lanes, the most obvious solution was not mentioned. I feel that the limited entrance and exit areas are the chief cause of slow traffic in the carpool lanes, also slowing traffic in other lanes. These areas are too short, forcing a radical slowing as cars try to move in and out. In addition, the distance from these open-access areas are in many instances too close to the exits for which they are intended. Cars leaving the carpool lanes are forced to cross four to five lanes quickly to leave the freeway, causing general slowing in all lanes.

Drivers in non-carpool lanes can change lanes at any time with a minimum reduction of speed. Elimination of the limited access would allow drivers who carpool time to gradually enter and leave the carpool lane.

Arthur Friedman

Newport Beach

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We should change the carpool signs from HOV to SUV and require all SUVs to use them 24/7. Car traffic would fly, and catching cheaters would be a snap.

Dan Kelly

Studio City

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One key factor that the California Department of Transportation is missing is illegal lane changing. Because of either ignorance of the law or impudence, drivers cross the double solid yellow lines to merge into carpool lanes. As it does in all the other lanes, this causes the drivers behind to slow until there is a dead stop a quarter of a mile back. Better enforcement is needed, but so is much more rigorous driver education. Perhaps the higher fines could pay for this.

It seems almost no one in L.A. even realizes that crossing a double solid yellow line is illegal (this includes turning left on surface streets), or that erratic lane jumping looking for the elusive fast lane is a leading cause of freeway accidents and certainly doesn’t speed things up for anyone.

John Durham

Los Angeles

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The Legislature should consider changing the rule from two people per vehicle to two licensed drivers per vehicle. After all, the spirit of the carpool lanes is that one driver parks his car and rides with another driver, thus removing one car from the roadway. When one of the two people is a child, no car is being removed from the road.

Neal Baldwin

Fullerton