Following on from our news of the government’s £6 billion investment into road improvements, more details of Transport Secretary Ruth Kelly’s plans have emerged – including plans to allow those prepared to pay to use the new ‘High Occupancy Vehicle’ lanes while driving solo.Kelly told the House of Commons that “where we add new capacity either by using the hard-shoulder, or by widening roads, I am particularly interested to see what role tolled or car-share lanes could play to give motorists a more reliable journey.”The news will be seen as confirmation that the Government is planning to create ‘Lexus lanes’ – to allow those who are prepared to pay to avoid congestion.The big unanswered question is how the extra lanes would be policed, and how the system would distinguish between those using them as high occupancy lanes (with more than one person in the vehicle) and those paying to use them to drive solo. Tolling would likely be carried out using a ‘tag and beacon’ transponder system, similar that that which has been installed on the German Autobahn network for trucks. The use of Automatic Numberplate Recognition – as is used for the London Congestion Charge – must be considered highly unlikely due to the large number of ‘false positives’ it turns up.Ms Kelly’s road plan, documented in a 72-page command paper, has been inspired by priority lane tolling systems in America.
