Califonia Hybrid Bill Passes

Gov. Schwarzenegger signed AB 2628 which allows new hybrid electric cars and recent-model low-emission vehicles to use the HOV (high-occupancy vehicle) lanes on California freeways normally reserved for carpools.

The bill opens those lanes to low-emissions vehicles produced during the 2004 model year or earlier as well as new low-emission hybrid-electric vehicles that achieve at least 45 miles per gallon. Meant as an incentive for people to buy hybrids, the bill also limits the total number of HOV stickers for these vehicles to 75,000 and sets procedures to avoid causing the HOV lanes to become congested.

Assemblywoman Fran Pavley, an Agoura Hills Democrat who authored the legislation, said it will encourage “those cars that operate at cleanest efficiency with 80% less emissions than a similar car in a nearby lane.” Pavley, who carried a 2002 bill to reduce vehicle “greenhouse gas” emissions starting in 2009, said the idea will also help curb some of the nation’s worst smog while spurring U.S. carmakers toward greater fuel efficiency.