Yea Or Nay? HOV Lanes On The Prospect Expressway

Could HOV lanes ease traffic on the Prospect Expressway? District 44′s Councilmember David Greenfield thinks so, which is why he’s asked New York State Department of Transportation Commissioner Joan McDonald to investigate the possibility of installing high occupancy vehicle lanes at the entrance of the Prospect Expressway (which is a state roadway).

“I know that many Brooklyn residents dread the thought of having to sit in traffic along the Prospect Expressway each morning and afternoon,” said Greenfield said in a statement. ”This is a simple and cost-effective solution that will drastically improve traffic flow, saving thousands of New Yorkers a lot of time and frustration.”

HOV lanes are designated solely for vehicles with passengers, as well as buses, motorcycles, emergency vehicles, and taxis theoretically to provide faster travel times. Currently, there are HOV lanes once you reach the Gowanus Expressway, but Greenfield contends that for many drivers the slowest portion of the trip is the two-mile stretch from where Ocean Parkway becomes the Prospect Expressway north of Church Avenue to its merger with the Gowanus at 3rd Avenue.

The city also has HOV lanes on the Manhattan Bridge, the Long Island Expressway leading to the Queens-Midtown Tunnel, and the Manhattan-bound Queensboro Bridge.

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