2 Del. Admin. Code § 2G.16

Current through Register Vol. 28, No. 5, November 1, 2024

Section 2G.16 - Signs for Priced Managed Lanes- General

Support:

01 A priced managed lane is a managed lane that employs tolling or pricing, typically through electronic toll collection, to manage congestion levels and maintain a certain level of service for users of the facility. A priced managed facility typically provides a less congested alternative to adjacent lanes along the same designated route, or to a nearby facility, that experience recurring congestion during peak periods. A priced managed lane might allow non-toll travel by certain vehicles based on occupancy or other criteria. A variety of operational management strategies might be used in conjunction with tolling or pricing.

02 The number and combination of operational strategies that are applied to a managed lane to manage congestion or improve efficiency might be practically limited by the amount of information that can be legibly displayed on signs or in signing sequences and still be readily comprehended by road users. Such factors to consider when evaluating alternatives for managed lanes are locations of signs for general-purpose interchanges and for other roadway conditions, the number of intermediate access points between the managed and general-purpose lanes and the need to repeat the operational information, and the distance over which a signing sequence that displays all of the eligibility requirements can be displayed.

03 Because managed lanes have the capability to employ a variety of operational strategies on a changing basis, it is not practical to assign a naming convention to such lanes for the purpose of signing based on the specific operational management strategies, as is more readily accomplished with other types of preferential lanes, such as HOV, Bus, or Bike lanes. Instead, the various requirements, restrictions, and eligibility criteria are more appropriately conveyed through a sequence of regulatory and guide signs with a more encompassing designation for the purpose of providing directional information.

04 As priced managed lanes become more prevalent as an operational strategy, it will be important to establish a uniform naming convention to distinguish those lanes that are an alternative to travel on adjacent general-purpose lanes on the same designated route to effectively communicate to motorists the range of basic requirements for similar facilities in different regions.

Standard:

05 Priced managed lanes that are adjacent to general-purpose lanes along the same designated route shall be signed using the legend EXPRESS or EXPRESS LANE(S). This provision shall apply when any of the following operational strategies is used for a managed lane:

A. All users of the managed lane are charged a fixed or variable toll;

B. General-purpose traffic using the managed lane is charged a fixed or variable toll, but HOV traffic is allowed to travel without being charged a toll on either a full- or part-time basis;

C. General-purpose traffic using the managed lane is charged a fixed or variable toll, but HOV traffic is offered a discounted toll on either a full- or part-time basis; or

D. General-purpose traffic using the managed lane is charged a fixed or variable toll, but HOV traffic registered with a local program travels at a discounted toll or without being charged a toll on either a full- or part-time basis (a transponder or other identifier is typically required of HOVs to indicate registration in conjunction with electronic or visual enforcement and verification of vehicle occupancy).

06 The legends EXPRESS and EXPRESS LANE(S) shall not be used on signs for entrances to highways on which all lanes are managed and there are no adjacent general-purpose lanes on the same designated route. The legends EXPRESS and EXPRESS LANE(S) shall not be used on signs for a managed ramp connection that provides an alternative to a general-purpose ramp connection (see Figure 2F-7), except where the ramp leads directly to a managed lane as described in Section 2G.14. The legends EXPRESS and EXPRESS LANE(S) shall not be used on signs for open-road tolling lanes that bypass a conventional toll plaza (see Chapter 2F).

07 The diamond symbol shall be reserved exclusively for preferential lanes whose operational strategy is occupancy-based only (see Sections 2G.03 through 2G.14) and shall not be used to designate a managed lane in which other operational strategies, such as tolling and pricing, are employed to allow general-purpose traffic to use the lane.

2 Del. Admin. Code § 2G.16