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canyonwalkerIt's the end of an era on California highways today. The Clean Air Vehicle (CAV) program that has provided free HOV lane access for many hybrid and EV cars ended yesterday. You may not be sure what CAV is, but if you've driven any amount in California's big cities in the past 20+ years you've surely seen the stickers on cars whizzing past you in the carpool lanes:
The program actually started in 1999, I read today. (Example news coverage: LAist article 30 Sep 2025) I didn't personally notice it as a California resident & driver until around 2005. Prior to that hybrid cars were rare, even out in California. But with Toyota's release of the second generation Prius in 2003 the hybrid started to become a best seller locally. Part of that success was access to these "ACCESS OK" stickers allowing free use of HOV lanes even with a solo occupant aboard. People with well paying jobs and long commutes started snapping them up to shorten their driving time.
A few years later, in 2008, gas prices spiked. The price at the pump of gas literally doubled in three years... when inflation overall was nearly flat. This sent even more commuters out to buy fuel-efficient hybrid vehicles— the Prius of that time was rated at close to 50mpg on the highway— trading in the gas-guzzling trucks and full-size SUVs that had dominated sales for years.
I remember quipping to colleagues in 2008~2009 that our company parking lot looked like a Toyota Prius dealership. There were so many look-alike cars that colleagues occasionally complained, "Oh, shit, my key doesn't work!"... only to find they were trying to open somebody else's Prius. 🤣
One thing I've noticed about the carpool lanes locally is that with all the hybrid/EV drivers and kid-poolers, they're often just as clogged as the regular lanes at rush hour. I wonder how much they'll lighten up now that the free pass stickers no longer work.
The program actually started in 1999, I read today. (Example news coverage: LAist article 30 Sep 2025) I didn't personally notice it as a California resident & driver until around 2005. Prior to that hybrid cars were rare, even out in California. But with Toyota's release of the second generation Prius in 2003 the hybrid started to become a best seller locally. Part of that success was access to these "ACCESS OK" stickers allowing free use of HOV lanes even with a solo occupant aboard. People with well paying jobs and long commutes started snapping them up to shorten their driving time.
A few years later, in 2008, gas prices spiked. The price at the pump of gas literally doubled in three years... when inflation overall was nearly flat. This sent even more commuters out to buy fuel-efficient hybrid vehicles— the Prius of that time was rated at close to 50mpg on the highway— trading in the gas-guzzling trucks and full-size SUVs that had dominated sales for years.
I remember quipping to colleagues in 2008~2009 that our company parking lot looked like a Toyota Prius dealership. There were so many look-alike cars that colleagues occasionally complained, "Oh, shit, my key doesn't work!"... only to find they were trying to open somebody else's Prius. 🤣
One thing I've noticed about the carpool lanes locally is that with all the hybrid/EV drivers and kid-poolers, they're often just as clogged as the regular lanes at rush hour. I wonder how much they'll lighten up now that the free pass stickers no longer work.
