Hybrid Cars

HYBRID CARS -- (Extensions of Remarks - May 14, 2004)

SPEECH OF
HON. ADAM B. SCHIFF
OF CALIFORNIA
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
THURSDAY, MAY 13, 2004

Mr. SCHIFF. Mr. Speaker, rising global temperatures. Dangerously polluted air. A hamstrung foreign policy. Our dependence on fossil fuels contributes to countless problems, and California is on the frontline of many of them.

The first step out of this morass may be hybrid cars. With double the gas mileage of standard cars and far lower tailpipe emissions, they could dramatically reduce our unsustainable levels of energy consumption. I believe we should do everything possible to encourage hybrid use, which is why I support recent efforts to let hybrid drivers use the carpool lane regardless of the number of passengers in the car. A pending bill in the California legislature institutes a pilot program along these lines: 70,000 permits for hybrid users to access the lane, with a review of the program once 50,000 permits have been distributed.

Federal law currently prohibits such a program, but the transportation bill working its way through Congress removes this ban and allows local jurisdictions to decide the issue for themselves. I support this change as a sensible and flexible way to encourage hybrid use. In fact, the House version of the bill originally required that hybrids be charged a toll to use the lane, a provision I considered unnecessary and heavy-handed. I proposed an amendment to remove this requirement, and guided this amendment to House passage.

The strongest criticism of this proposed change is that it will lead to overcrowded carpool lanes. We should take this concern seriously, since the carpool lane was created as much to relieve traffic congestion as to improve air quality. But there are a number of reasons to think this problem will not materialize or will be manageable if it does.

First, hybrids account for less than one half of one percent of new cars sold today. While it is true that car makers will soon be expanding their hybrid product lines considerably, it is estimated that hybrid cars will still amount to less than five percent of new car sales by 2013. Many of these cars will be hybrid sport utility vehicles that will not meet the Federal transportation bill's strict fuel efficiency standard for access to the carpool lane.

For that matter, Caltrans has estimated that carpool lanes around the state are at two-thirds of their maximum capacity. There is room for adding hybrid cars.

Of course, the goal is to encourage widespread adoption of hybrid technology. In some sense, we should hope that the lane will become more crowded, because it will be a sign that the incentive is working. That is why a flexible solution is essential. Local jurisdictions should monitor their own carpool lanes and impose restrictions as needed. The California bill perfectly embodies this approach: rather than diving in head first, the proposed program tests the waters with a limited number of permits.

Some have argued that once the lane is open to hybrid drivers they will not submit to new restrictions, even if a crowded carpool lane makes such restrictions necessary. This naturally assumes that access to a clogged carpool lane is worth fighting for. More important, it suggests an approach to governing that would limit us from trying new ideas; we must not avoid taking action for fear of our own success.

Allowing hybrids in the carpool lane is a bipartisan, problem-solving move toward cleaner air, and it will cost taxpayers little or nothing to implement. We should proceed forward in a cautious way, understanding that other goals are at stake but that freeing ourselves from the straightjacket of fossil fuels is worth the effort.

END