Law in Contemporary Society

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BrandonGeFirstPaper 18 - 27 May 2010 - Main.BrandonGe
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The Destination

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<		Local governments first created high occupancy vehicle (HOV) lanes in the 1960s and 1970s in response to rising foreign oil prices and the consequent desirability of lowering gas consumption. Creating the lanes became popular among cities as a way of encouraging carpooling, thereby increasing person throughput, increasing road capacity, and improving air quality. Although HOV lanes have possible benefits, the country has not realized much of this potential because of the difficulty in enforcing lawful use.
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>		High occupancy vehicle (HOV) lanes were first created in the 1960s and 1970s in response to rising foreign oil prices and the consequent desirability of lowering gas consumption. Creating the lanes became popular among cities as a way of encouraging carpooling, thereby increasing person throughput, increasing road capacity, and improving air quality. Although HOV lanes have possible benefits, much of this potential has not been realized because of the difficulty in enforcing lawful use.
 
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<		High violation rates pervade the country. Problems inhere in human officers trying to distinguish violators from innocent carpoolers in moving vehicles on high-traffic roads. The naked eye has difficulty seeing occupants such as babies and nappers. Further complicating matters, some states have allowed owners of certain hybrid vehicles to apply for special license plates that let them use HOV lanes regardless of occupancy. Police officer enforcement can also be counterproductive. The draw of HOV lanes for carpoolers lies in their faster transit times, but officers slow traffic, both because many drivers slow down when they see a police car, and because suitable enforcement areas are often unavailable.
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>		High violation rates pervade the country, as problems inhere in human officers trying to distinguish violators from innocent carpoolers in moving vehicles on high-traffic roads. The naked eye has difficulty seeing occupants such as babies and nappers. Further complicating matters, some states have allowed owners of certain hybrid vehicles to apply for special license plates that let them use HOV lanes regardless of occupancy. Police officer enforcement can also be counterproductive. The draw of HOV lanes for carpoolers lies in their faster transit times, but officers slow traffic, both because many drivers slow down when they see a police car, and because suitable enforcement areas are often unavailable.
 Because police officer enforcement is inefficient, the ultimate goal should be increasing compliance with HOV lane rules while decreasing reliance on police enforcement as much as possible, allowing deployment of officers to more productive areas. To achieve this, I propose that we focus on creating a social norm and stigmatizing violation of HOV lane restrictions (a theory that has also been described by Professor Strahilevitz).

Revision 18r18 - 27 May 2010 - 02:53:44 - BrandonGe
Revision 17r17 - 18 May 2010 - 18:34:56 - BrandonGe
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