High-occupancy vehicle lane in the context of "Slip road"

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⭐ Core Definition: High-occupancy vehicle lane

A high-occupancy vehicle lane (also known as an HOV lane, carpool lane, diamond lane, 2+ lane, and transit lane or T2 or T3 lanes) is a restricted traffic lane reserved for the exclusive use of vehicles with a driver and at least one passenger, including carpools, vanpools, and transit buses. These restrictions may be only imposed during peak travel times or may apply at all times. There are different types of lanes: temporary or permanent lanes with concrete barriers, two-directional or reversible lanes, and exclusive, concurrent, or contraflow lanes working in peak periods.

The normal minimum occupancy level is two or three occupants. Many jurisdictions exempt other vehicles, including motorcycles, charter buses, emergency and law enforcement vehicles, low-emission and other green vehicles, and/or single-occupancy vehicles paying a toll. HOV lanes are normally introduced to increase average vehicle occupancy and persons traveling with the goal of reducing traffic congestion and air pollution.

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👉 High-occupancy vehicle lane in the context of Slip road

In the field of road transport, an interchange (American English) or a grade-separated junction (British English) is a road junction that uses grade separations to allow for the movement of traffic between two or more roadways or highways, using a system of interconnecting roadways to permit traffic on at least one of the routes to pass through the junction without interruption from crossing traffic streams. It differs from a standard intersection, where roads cross at grade. Interchanges are almost always used when at least one road is a controlled-access highway (freeway) or a limited-access highway (expressway), though they are sometimes used at junctions between surface streets.

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High-occupancy vehicle lane in the context of Dallas Area Rapid Transit

Dallas Area Rapid Transit (DART) is a transit agency serving the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex of Texas. It operates buses, light rail, commuter rail, and high-occupancy vehicle lanes in Dallas and twelve of its suburbs. In 2024, the system had a ridership of 55,151,000, or about 162,900 per weekday as of the third quarter of 2025.

DART was created in 1983 to replace a municipal bus system and funded expansion of the region's transit network through a sales tax levied in member cities. DART rail began operation in 1996 and operates over 93 miles (149.7 km) of track. It was the longest light rail system in the United States until 2023, when it was surpassed by Los Angeles Metro Rail with the consolidation of the A Line.

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High-occupancy vehicle lane in the context of Interstate 270 (Maryland)

Interstate 270 (I-270) is a 34.7-mile (55.8 km) auxiliary Interstate Highway in the U.S. state of Maryland that travels from I-495 (Capital Beltway) just north of Bethesda in Montgomery County north to I-70 in the city of Frederick in Frederick County. It consists of the 32.6-mile (52.5 km) mainline as well as a 2.1-mile (3.4 km) spur that provides access to and from southbound I-495. I-270 is known as the Washington National Pike, and makes up the easternmost stretch of the Dwight D. Eisenhower Highway. Most of the southern part of the route in Montgomery County passes through suburban areas around Rockville and Gaithersburg that are home to many biotech firms. This portion of I-270 is up to 12 lanes wide and consists of a local–express lane configuration as well as high-occupancy vehicle lanes (HOV lanes) that are in operation during peak travel times. North of the Gaithersburg area, the road continues through the northern part of Montgomery County, passing Germantown and Clarksburg as a six- to eight-lane highway with an HOV lane in the northbound direction only. North of here, I-270 continues through rural areas into Frederick County and toward the city of Frederick as a four-lane freeway.

The freeway was built between 1953 and 1960 as the Washington National Pike between Bethesda and Frederick and carried U.S. Route 240 (US 240), which was rerouted off what is now Maryland Route 355 (MD 355) between these two points. With the creation of the Interstate Highway System a few years later, the road was designated as I-70S along with US 240. There were plans to extend I-70S to I-95 in Washington, D.C., on the North Central Freeway from the Capital Beltway; however, they were canceled in the 1970s due to opposition from residents in the freeway's path. The concurrent US 240 designation was removed in 1972 and I-70S became I-270 in 1975. Increasing traffic levels led to a $200-million (equivalent to $509 million in 2024) widening of the road in Montgomery County to its current configuration. Many improvements are slated for I-270, including the widening of the route that would add high-occupancy toll lanes (HOT lanes).

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