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Friday, January 24, 2003

By Joe Grata, Post-Gazette Staff Writer

The high occupancy vehicle, or HOV, lanes on Interstate 279 will now be open most days when it snows.

Instead of closing the outbound gates at 7 p.m. weekdays, workers will keep them open until 5 a.m., when they reverse the lanes for inbound traffic between the North Hills and Pittsburgh.

The change will enable Pennsylvania Department of Transportation trucks to get to the HOV lanes all night long if snow is to be plowed or the roadway is to be salted, District 11 maintenance engineer Andy Kost said yesterday.

Previously, PennDOT had closed the 4.1 miles of HOV lanes in both directions between 7 p.m. and 5 a.m., keeping PennDOT trucks off and also keeping the special facility closed to car and van pools and buses during rush hours.

"This way, there's a better chance that the HOV will be open for inbound traffic when it snows," Kost said. "If we get a severe snowstorm, the HOV will remain second priority" to the I-279 mainline, used by 20,000 vehicles between 6 and 9 a.m.

The Pittsburgh Post-Gazette reported last week that the HOV lanes often remain closed after it snows because PennDOT puts a higher priority on keeping I-279 clear.