Community Corner

110 Freeway Toll Lanes Open Nov. 10

Drivers are required to have a FasTrak transponder to use the voluntary ExpressLanes—formerly the carpool lanes—on the 110 Freeway in Los Angeles.

Commuters who travel the 110 Freeway will soon be able to use the new Metro ExpressLanes, which are replacing the freeway's current carpool lanes.

The I-110 ExpressLanes are scheduled to open Nov. 10 and are voluntary for motorists to use.

All drivers—whether solo or in a carpool—who utilize the I-110 ExpressLanes stretching between the 405 Freeway and 5 Freeway before downtown Los Angeles must have a FasTrak transponder, according to the official Metro ExpressLanes website.

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ExpressLanes will determine the toll for the car by a switch on the FasTrak transponder. To use the ExpressLanes, drivers must indicate the number of occupants in the car (one, two or three-plus) by using a switch on the FasTrak transponder before the trip begins.

Tolls for single drivers on the I-110 will be calculated using congestion pricing, which adjusts the amount of the toll in accordance with how many people are using the freeway.

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"Tolls on the ExpressLanes are based on real-time traffic conditions and vary according to the level of congestion in the ExpressLanes," according to the ExpressLanes website. "The toll is higher when there is more traffic in the ExpressLanes, and lower when traffic is lighter."

The toll will be automatically deducted from a driver's FasTrak account once the vehicle passes the start of the toll segment.

Carpools with two or more people using the ExpressLanes on I-110 will not be charged a toll.

The carpool lanes on the 10 Freeway will be opened as ExpressLanes in early 2013, according to Metro. On the I-10 ExpressLanes, the lanes will be free to carpools with three or more people. Carpools with two or more people must pay the toll at certain hours of the day.

FasTrack accounts can be opened online or at a walk-in center.

Revenues generated from the tolls will be used to operate and maintain the ExpressLanes, according to an FAQ on the ExpressLanes website. The toll lanes on I-110 and I-10 combined are expected to bring in about $20 million annually.

Will you use Metro's new ExpressLanes? Tell us in the comments section below.


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