HOV lanes

You may remember, a bit back, I mentioned that the windmill du jour for me would be getting the HOV lane on the Sante Fe corridor between Littleton and Denver abolished. Since this route runs through 4 municipalities, all four would need to come down in favor of abolition. They would then have to jointly ask the CDOT* to take down the signage and lights. There is a possibility that CDOT would have to get permission from the federal government to do that, but I do not see that as as difficult as getting the cities on board.

Of the four, Englewood is the biggest prosecutor of the thing, raking in nearly $2000/hour writing tickets once a week. I have asked their city councilman, Wayne Oakly, who is also their man on the DRCOG** board, about doing this, citing lack of use for the lane, and high congestion as a result. He seemed surprised to hear about this, and asked to speak with the city traffic and police. That was August 16. I pinged him again today to see what he had found out:

Hi Bill,

I am running for re-election and will not have time for this until after the election.

Wayne

The worst part of being a representative of the people must be having to listen to the whiny bastards all the time. If only it weren't necessary to have to convince them of ones worthiness every 2 years or so, far more could, no doubt be accomplished.

Notwithstanding how busy he must be, if any of my readers in the Denver metro area would like to know if abolishing the Sante Fe HOV lane and ending the congestion is on Mr. Oakly's platform, he is conveniently listed on the internet here, and everything you need to know is:

Council Member Wayne Oakley. Address: 4691 S. Mariposa Drive Englewood, CO 80110

. Phone: 303-981-0626

If you use Sante Fe, remember that management of the Littleton-Denver segment of it is a DRCOG matter and as a member, Mr. Oakly is as valid a representative for you as anyone. If he has a position, let me know what it is. He seemed to lack motivation to me.

I suppose the next step would be a large sign on the tailgate of my truck informing my fellow commuters that Mr. Oakly would be the person to call about the congestion.

*CDOT: Colo Dept of Transportation. Manages state highways.
**DRCOG: Denver Regional Council of Governments. Our local version of the G20 or the UN. Marginally more useful.