California's carpool lane perk for EVs nears the end of the road

Yahoo

17-03-2025

The federal law that enables California's electric vehicles to use the high-occupancy vehicle lane without passengers is set to expire, spelling a likely end to a popular incentive amid broader attacks on EV-friendly policies.
The change will come at a time of political polarization around clean transportation and as President Donald Trump's administration proposes eliminating other electric vehicle incentives such as the individual $7,500 EV tax credit.
The federal statute says public authorities can allow use of carpool lanes by single-occupancy vehicles meeting certain conditions until Sept. 30. California legislators want to extend the window, but lawmakers in Washington, D.C., have yet to introduce a bill or otherwise move to authorize an extension.
California allows certain vehicles, including EVs, to use the high-occupancy vehicle lane without passengers. The table below illustrates the program's popularity over the years as it is set to expire in September.
Total decals issued
2019
98,634
2020
59,173
2021
84,493
2022
118,750
2023
128,122
2024
194,486
Total
683,658
Source: California Department of Motor Vehicles
Republican State Assemblymember Greg Wallis, who authored the bill to extend the HOV lane rule in California, called it a 'key incentive.'
'Many California auto buyers purchase ZEVs to access HOV lanes,' he said in a statement. 'I strongly encourage the Trump administration to extend the program to keep our transportation transition moving in the right direction.'
In 2024, the state's Department of Motor Vehicles issued 194,486 stickers allowing cars to use the HOV lane with single occupancy through the Clean Air Vehicle decal program. That's a 52 percent increase from 2023's 128,122 decals.
The popularity of the program paradoxically undermines its efficiency. As more vehicles are able to use the HOV lane, it becomes more crowded, eroding the incentive for both clean-air vehicle drivers and those making a concerted effort to carpool.
'You're going to reach some point where you've exhausted that excess capacity,' said John Swanton, an air pollution specialist with the California Air Resource Board's communications office. 'We're not at the point where, no matter what we do, it's totally exhausted, but the challenge to our legislature is how to keep this a meaningful incentive.'
The 1998 Transportation Equity Act for the 21st Century allowed states to permit a vehicle with fewer than two occupants to operate in the HOV lane if the vehicle is 'certified as an inherently low-emission vehicle.'
That law enabled California to create its decal program in 1999, which was designed to incentivize the adoption of new technologies.
'This has been absolutely instrumental,' Swanton said. 'It was a tool used to essentially promote more rapid adoption of those technologies and it did it by utilizing excess capacity in the HOV lanes.'
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There have been several versions of the decal program, with different powertrain requirements for eligibility. Now, qualifying vehicles must be 100 percent electric or hydrogen-fuel cell vehicles, plug-in hybrids that meet certain conditions or compressed natural gas vehicles that meet certain conditions.
The federally granted state authority to use the HOV lane to encourage clean transport expires in September. Wallis, the California lawmaker, authored a bill that extended the state program until Jan. 1, 2027 ― pending extended federal authorization.
There are several considerations for extending the federal law. Those in favor say it would continue to incentivize zero-emissions vehicles at a key moment for the energy transition. Sales for EVs are still growing, but at a slower clip than in years past.
'It would provide a small but an additional incentive to support the growth of the zero-emission vehicle market,' said John Boesel, CEO of CALSTART, a nonprofit focused on clean transportation.
However, the inclusion of clean-air vehicles in the HOV lane does not motivate carpooling to reduce congestion overall, which is the true purpose of the lane.
There are other ways the state can leverage HOV lanes to reduce congestion and pollution ― for example, by charging a toll for use of the lane that can fund other transportation programs.
The decal initiative would also require a federal extension when policies encouraging EV adoption are under threat. The Republican-led Congress has introduced a bill to eliminate the individual $7,500 EV tax credit.
California's EV policies are of particular import to Republicans because the state has a waiver from the EPA to write its own, stricter greenhouse gas emissions standards. Critics say this creates a system of dual regulations for automakers. House Majority Leader Steve Scalise of Louisiana has identified eliminating the California waiver as a priority for the legislature.
'The general consensus is that this is not going to be a deal-breaker' if the incentive is not extended, CARB's Swanton said. 'Nowadays, the number of folks that only buy [a qualifying vehicle] because they have this carpool incentive is pretty small.'
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