As HOV Clock Ticks Down, Drivers Prepare to Pounce

By Eric M. Weiss
Washington Post Staff Writer
Monday, June 2, 2008

They are the "6:01ers," commuters who have found their own trick to beating the Washington area's traffic gridlock.

They lie in wait in strip mall parking lots and park illegally on the side of the road near high-occupancy vehicle ramps, waiting for the clock to strike 6:01 p.m. -- when the carpool lanes on Interstate 95/395 open up to all vehicles, not just those with three or more occupants.

If drivers can hit the lanes as soon as they open to all traffic, their reward is a rocket ride from the Pentagon home -- without the need to pick up carpoolers or slugs -- while other hapless drivers sit in backups. The same phenomenon happens in the morning, just before the lanes open to all traffic at 9 a.m. The waiters can be spotted, often with coffee and cellphone in hand, parked several cars deep on the side of the Franconia-Springfield Parkway near the HOV ramp entrance.

And they can be found near the Pentagon and Columbia Pike in the afternoon, just before 6, when the southbound lanes open.

In the Washington region, which suffers from the second-worst traffic in the nation, it seems all commuters have a strategy to outfox fellow motorists. Some have shortcuts they won't share with even their closest friends; others wake up at the crack of dawn or wait until after rush hour; some are outright cheaters who take their chances driving in restricted lanes and are prepared to pay the price.

"It's that golden time frame where if you get in early enough, you can get a clean shot," said Virginia State Trooper Steven R. Mittendorff. Those first few minutes after the HOV restrictions expire provide as close to an open road as one can get in the area. "After that, you might as well stay in the regular lanes."

Hiram Gonzalez, a 6:01er who was waiting on the side of the highway near the Pentagon recently, said that if he times it just right, he can shave an hour off his commute home to Woodbridge. That can mean the difference between being able to shower and relax a bit before dinner or not.

"It's 25 minutes to Woodbridge this way; it's an hour and 25 minutes in the regular lanes," said Gonzalez, who had been working since 6 a.m.

There are rush-hour HOV lane restrictions on Interstate 270 in Montgomery County, but David Buck, spokesman for the Maryland Department of Transportation, said, "We do not have people lying in wait, possibly because it's only HOV-2." Route 50 in Prince George's County also has HOV-2 rules, but they are always in effect.

Drivers violating the restrictions risk a $90 fine and one point on their license, Sgt. Arthur Betts of the Maryland State Police said.

In Virginia, the 6:01ers lie in wait, because getting onto the HOV lanes too early can get them a $125 ticket, plus court costs. Sometimes, 40 to 50 cars are lined up in the afternoon near the Pentagon and Columbia Pike, drivers watching the minutes tick by, ignoring signs posted to discourage the practice.

The practice also happens on Interstate 66 but to a lesser degree, police said.

"Some will wait on the exit ramps. But those inside-the-Beltway people will just jump in and take their chances," Mittendorff said.

"A lot of people use the 'talking on the cellphone' excuse," he said. "But many are quite honest, saying, 'Hey, I left the office early and pulled over rather than take a risk on getting an HOV ticket.' "

The drivers might think their actions aren't harming anyone, but, Mittendorff said, sitting on the shoulder of the road is dangerous. It's also illegal: Doing so can lead to a $40 ticket and three points on a driver's license.

That's why Mittendorff quickly pulled his unmarked, souped-up black Dodge Charger in front of several waiters near the Pentagon one day recently. It was 5:56 p.m. He jumped out in full uniform. Two cars ahead of him roared away. Another driver, from the back of the pack, also tried to pull away, prompting Mittendorff to step into traffic and point him back onto the shoulder.

Mittendorff was not surprised that several drivers peeled out to get away from him.

"It's a cat-and-mouse game," he said. He and his colleagues try to hit the regular gathering spots every day, but there is only a five- to 10-minute enforcement window when drivers pull over in the morning and evenings.

Jeffrey Smith of Woodbridge was one of those ticketed. He said he understood the danger of parking on the shoulder. "I don't dispute that," he said. "But I'm not the most patient of people."

Alexandria resident Terry Luckenbill usually hits the highway at 6:30 p.m., but on this day he had left work early for a dentist's appointment. He was alone and realized that he didn't qualify for the carpool lanes. So he pulled over by the Pentagon.

"I thought I'd better pull over, because I didn't want to get an HOV ticket," he said as he waited for Mittendorff to write him a ticket. "You just can't win."

Another driver, Scherwin Hargrove of Dumfries, told Mittendorff that she had pulled over only so she could talk on her cellphone more safely. She got a ticket anyway.

Showing just how intent commuters are to hit the lanes as soon as the HOV restrictions are lifted, no one even slowed down to rubberneck during Mittendorff's sting, despite the spectacle of four cars pulled over by two police cruisers and a newspaper photographer standing on a nearby Jersey barrier capturing the scene.

But the days of gaming the system are numbered. The two I-395 HOV lanes are scheduled to be converted into three high-occupancy toll lanes that will charge tolls 24 hours a day. The changes could be in place by 2012. The state is negotiating with a consortium of private companies on a final agreement and time frame.

The 6:01ers and 9:01ers will have to adapt and join a carpool, pick up slugs, take a bus or pay the tolls, which are expected to be more than $1 a mile. And the private companies building the road plan on strict enforcement.

Scott Digilio said he is not worried about the HOT lanes. He was parked near an HOV ramp in Springfield recently, waiting for the clock in his government SUV to turn 9:01. The State Department employee said he can make it to Foggy Bottom in 12 minutes if he gets in the lanes right at 9:01.

"The government will pay the tolls, I guess," he said.

Until that day, Mittendorff will continue issuing tickets to the 9:01ers and 6:01ers. But not enough to stop those waiting for that golden time frame.

"They'll be back tomorrow," he said. "It's all about getting that advantage."