GWINNETT COUNTY, Ga.,None — Despite the complaints, more people are using the HOT lanes in Gwinnett County, the Southern Regional Transit Authority says.
On Wednesday, they SRTA said the number of cars using the lanes is increasing each commute day.
Channel 2's Sophia Choi didn't see many drivers using the Interstate 85 toll lanes at about 8:30 a.m. but earlier Channel 2 Triple Team Traffic reporter Mark Arum said it was the thing to do.
"I think we saw a lot more folks using the HOT express lanes this morning than we had in any previous morning. I think the combination of early delays and couple of problems spots out there and folks saw the benefit, starting to see the benefit now, when things get really bad. It might be worth a dollar to dollar and a half to save 30 minutes from your trip time," Arum said.
The SRTA said the number of cars using the HOT lanes jumped from 3,200 cars on the Monday after they first opened, to 7,300 cars this past Monday. That's an increase of more than 4,000 cars in just two weeks.
Still, many drivers said the HOT lanes are a bad idea and they refuse to pay even a dollar to use them.
"If it costs me a buck to travel that lane, no," driver Troy Newland said.
"It's been free all these years, why we gonna add more expense to the people? The economy is already bad," Vernon Williams said.
Brenda Lowery said, "It makes no sense to pay to use the lanes, it really doesn't."
The HOT lanes run for 16 miles from Chamblee Tucker Road just south of Interstate 285, to Old Peachtree Road in Gwinnett County.
"It's just a short window, really; it's not the whole highway. It doesn't make any sense," Williams said.
"Occupancy of that lane is probably only around 5 percent. The majority of the day it's empty," Newland said.
Choi checked with the SRTA to see if more people used them Wednesday because of the backup from the rain and other traffic problems, but a representative said they probably won't have those numbers until Thursday.
WSBTV
