Reimagine Tolling With HOTTER Lanes

As the United States expands tolling in the 21st century, the destination remains unclear. Ongoing cycles of road congestion and lane construction consume valuable metropolitan land and limit options for livable communities. What kind of future will our tolls fund?

In "A Sustainable and Equitable Approach to Financing Multimodal Transportation Alternatives in Metropolitan Areas" (Journal of the American Planning Association, Vol. 90, No. 3) Patrick DeCorla-Souza proposes transforming metropolitan freeways into sustainable, multimodal systems that offer congestion-free travel for non-drivers and those underserved by public transit.

While tolls go back at least 2000 years, the first turnpike came to the United States in 1792. With the introduction of cars, the demand for quality high-speed travel only grew.

Driving is the only choice for most suburban residents in the U.S. Solo commutes lead to intolerable peak-period congestion on metropolitan highways and build pressure for more lanes. But expanded highways could induce even busier roads and further entrench our car-centric landscape.

There's also the cost. The Federal Highway Administration has estimated the average cost (in 2014 dollars) to construct new lanes in major urbanized areas at $15.4 million per lane mile when sufficient right of way is available, and as high as $64.2 million when it is not.

21st Century Tolling

Financing policies have fueled the cycle of construction and congestion on U.S. highways. New approaches, like roadway congestion pricing, can promote alternative transportation and fund it. In 2007, the U.S. Federal Highway Administration's Public Roads proposed pricing the metropolitan highway system and using the revenue to enhance alternatives or share with motorists.

Some metro areas have implemented congestion pricing on new highway lanes, while others use high-occupancy toll (HOT) lanes where non-high occupancy vehicles (HOVs) pay variable tolls. In 2021, over 50 toll lane facilities operated in the U.S. In the Miami metro area, HOT lanes generated surplus revenue for enhanced express bus services.

When HOT lanes are added as new lanes, they rarely generate surplus revenue because of high costs. Most require public subsidies to cover capital expenses and attract private investors.

Combining Schemes

Freeway congestion pricing faces public opposition: overpaying for previously free roads, congestion on alternate routes, and affordability for low-income drivers. Credit-based pricing systems address some concerns with incentives and costs. DeCorla-Souza integrates credit systems with HOT lanes to improve metro highways.

In DeCorla-Souza's proposal, one or two existing highway lanes in each direction would be tolled during peak periods. HOVs can use these lanes for free, while toll-free lanes remain available for those who prefer not to pay or share rides.

Using cash rewards, travelers are incentivized to use carpools, vanpools, and public transit. This incentive would be sufficient to reduce overall traffic demand, alleviating congestion on priced lanes and ensuring that the current level of congestion does not increase on the toll-free lanes.

There is evidence from multiple metro areas suggesting this incentive system would be met with enthusiasm. In northern Virginia, drivers have opted to stop and pick up passengers on the fly at designated pickup locations, a system known as instant carpooling, casual carpooling, or slugging, to save on toll costs and achieve a faster trip on the I-95 HOT lanes, which offer toll exemptions for HOVs with three or more occupants.

Launched in Lyon, France, in 2019, the instant carpooling program featured designated pickup locations, an app for drivers and passengers, and cash rewards — €1 for using the app and an extra €2 for picking up a passenger. The study showed that 90 percent of passengers had access to a car, and 60 percent of carpool trips were made by former solo drivers.

Figure 2: Comparison of freeway congestion pricing approaches.

Toll revenue funds operations, cash rewards, and multimodal investments, including express bus services on the priced lanes, mobility hubs at activity centers, and first– and last–mile transportation services operating between mobility hubs and trip origins and destinations.

DeCorla-Souza refers to these priced lanes as HOTTER lanes — High-Occupancy, Transit, and Tolled vehicles on Existing lanes with Rewards for those who share rides.

Building a complete HOT network is feasible only in large, heavily congested metro areas. However, HOTTER lanes might be viable on moderately congested freeways, allowing for their implementation across such networks.

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