Driver’s remorse (everyone else is doing it)

I broke the law today. The Girlfriend thinks I’m evil person and continuous lawbreaker–but it’s not something I do every day (unless keeping a dead hooker buried in your basement is illegal). I should probably hire a lawyer and only confess my wrongdoings to a priest but I’m so damn emotional about the topic I can’t keep my mouth shut.

I was stuck in yet another freeway traffic jam. This one was nowhere near as bad as previous timewasters–but frustrating nonetheless. My friends and coworkers tell me I should take solace in that at least I’m getting paid to sit in traffic but it’s just not enough for me. Getting outside is great and being in a cubicle sucks: but sitting in traffic isn’t much better. I suppose technically I’m outside. But with all the exhaust from other cars, you can’t roll the window down. The car feels like a plush prison cell, equipped with a radio and air conditioning.

As I was parked on the freeway, I watched the vehicles in the carpool lane brisk past me. I was moving a swift ten miles per hour; they were driving about six times faster than that. And even though they were able to blow past me, I was still able to see clearly inside the vehicles. I know there are plenty of cheaters out there–folks who drive in carpool lanes even though they are alone–but I was alarmed by how many I saw. Instead of making a broad estimate, I started counting. Since I’m limited to the ten fingers I have, I had to reset the count at ten; however, I feel comfortable with the research and numbers I’m about to give you.

One in three cars driving in that carpool lane were single occupancy vehicles.

I did four ten counts. In each count of ten, three or for cars that passed me only had one person in them: the driver. I watched the cars as they drove towards me in my rearview mirror. If I didn’t see a passenger, I looked closely at the car as it drove by me. Since I was in the company Tahoe, I was significantly higher than the majority of cars that went by. I was able to see inside clearly–kinda like peeking inside an oven through the glass window. Most carpool drivers cars did have passengers (but just because you have a passenger, that doesn’t mean you’re carpooling in my book) but an alarming number were simply solo drivers who didn’t want to wait. I knew there were people out there who ignored carpool lane laws for their own convenience: I had no idea it was that many. One in three.

What a waste! If 30 percent of the carpool lane drivers are illegally there, our government clearly isn’t doing a good enough job on carpool lane enforcement. I know the odds are slim of anyone actually ever getting caught illegally driving in a carpool lane–I just thought we, as a society, were more willing to abide by the honor system. Everyone knows it’s wrong to drive in the carpool lane alone; everyone knows you’re probably not gonna get caught. But as a whole, I thought we didn’t drive in the carpool lane because people knew it was wrong.

It turns out I’m the one who is wrong.

I watched the lawbreakers pass me. They all seem so smug because the law doesn’t apply to them. When I saw a BMW and a Corvette pass me–both solely occupied by rich-looking men in suits–I had enough. There’s no way I could ever beat these people. They’ll never get their comeuppance. The world doesn’t punish carpool violators harshly enough. A $400 fine for something people hardly ever get caught doing? No wonder no one cares–it seems like a small price to pay based on the odds of getting caught. These assholes would continuing driving in the carpool lane and nothing would ever stop them. If I can’t beat ’em, might as well join ’em. Why should I be the sucker waiting in traffic?

Not only did I ride in the carpool lane alone, I also crossed over the double-yellow line instead of waiting for a carpool lane entrance (if you’re gonna go down, go down big).

In retrospect, I feel a little bad. I wasn’t being part of the solution and I was definitely part of the problem. But how can I fix this situation? What can I do to make it right? If anything, maybe by becoming one of them I can make it right. If more people become carpool lane violators–if we get the number flipped and only a third of carpool lane drivers are multi-passenger vehicles–maybe that’ll be enough for legislation to try and solve the carpool lane problem. As is, the system just doesn’t work. Why should I be part of a flawed system? A lot of other people don’t follow the rules; today, I became one of them.

I just hope this doesn’t become permanent. I loved blowing by traffic and instead of waiting in it. It’s exhilarating because I got the patience of a toddler–I just hope I don’t become addicted to it.