HOV Lanes. That's High Occupancy Vehicles.

Here in Atlanta, we have HOV lanes - lanes on the left side of the highway that "...are an integral part of the Georgia NAVIGATOR system, designed to help reduce air pollution, improve traffic congestion and ensure a substantial time savings for commuters who rideshare (two or more occupants per vehicle)."

That's fine. I support this. Sometimes I have a passenger in the car with me, more often than that, I don't.

Here's the rub: From the FAQ page,

Q. If my child is riding with me, does he/she count as a second passenger and qualify me to use the HOV lanes?

A. Yes.

Q. But having a child in the car doesn't get another car off the road.

A. True, but the fact of the matter is that the current designation of the lanes is HOV-2, and the number of passengers doesn't specify age.

WTF?!?!

If the goal of the HOV lane is to promote and encourage ridesharing, then it only makes sense to me that you should need to have at least two licensed drivers in the car. A soccer mom and her little goalie? Hell, the whole little league team. A new Mom and her newborn, on the way to the doctor for that 1-month checkup. Get over here in traffic and wait with the rest of us.

And THAT...is what really grinds my gears.

Know What I'm Sayin'??