Rick Badie / My Opinion

By NOWICUNVME

December 2, 2008 7:25 PM | Link to this

Depends on where I was cruising to. I wonder if they’ll get an “EZ Pass” set up for it too. Those are great! No stopping just a quick flash or stick it to your windshield, and it’s smooth sailing. I wonder how they’re gonna enforce it though. I used to get heated when I saw single passenger vehicles barreling down the hov lanes during peak hours without a care in the world.

Sounds like a money maker and a convenience in one. I just need to wait and see what the damage (cost) will be.

By Michael H. Smith

December 2, 2008 8:20 PM | Link to this

I don’t know if I would or would not pay to ride or drive in what is commonly called Lexus Lanes.

What I do know is these Lexus Lanes should be put on the ballot for Georgians to decide, yea or nay. These additional lanes should not be decided upon by The Atlanta Reeeeeeeegional Commission taking a vote. Since in all likelihood these tolls will last for time and eternity that could increase from time to time at the whims of State Government.

By Ralph

December 2, 2008 8:58 PM | Link to this

No road that was built with taxpayer money should be converted to a toll road. If you want a toll road, build it from scratch.

By LT5000

December 3, 2008 7:03 AM | Link to this

A better solution would be to not allow semi trucks on the road during rush hours in Atlanta.

Trucks and construction are the main causes of congestion in Atlanta.

LT5000

By The Way

December 3, 2008 8:55 AM | Link to this

Cell phones and Toll Lanes: For whom does the cell toll? It tolls 4 thee. Toll not, and ye shall not be told to yield to the cells, the cells, the cells…..aw to hell with the cells.

For is it not that for why we flip off others for which it becomes the same reason they flip off ourselves? Pay no heed to the hayseed on the cellphone in the Pickup Truck and Tailgate not, and ye shall not be cut off or told to forsake the high road whilst lessers take the low road, and never the twain shall meet, unless you race it to the crossing…..

Toll not, and ye shall not be tolled.

By Bullitt

December 3, 2008 11:08 AM | Link to this

Oh yeah, that’s gonna solve the traffic problem on one of the worst commutes in the ATL! Take all the traffic, reduce the lanes by one , put that traffic back on those recuced number of lanes and then take a FRACTION of cars and allow them to use the open lane. BRILLANT!! That’s the way to help ALL the people with the hellish commute. I agree with RAlph @ 8:58- if they what a toll road-build one, don’t take a road that was biult with taxpayer dollars for the use by all and turn it into a toll lane for use by only a few

By LB

December 3, 2008 12:30 PM | Link to this

I agree with an earlier post. We are already paying huge taxes that are used for roads. Why should anyone have to pay toll on top of that. Another post stated that single drivers are using HOV lanes and I have seen it myself. If they can’t enforce what they already have why create another situation where people cheat and make honest people mad.

By scrappy

December 3, 2008 12:51 PM | Link to this

Has any proof of this system working been provided? I somehow don’t take the word of the Transportation secretary.

A little ironic too that the Lexus Lanes complaints are not related to the “rich getting to use faster and better stuff” when that was all I heard about when they opened the Clear lane at ATL. Same commute issues, just one is at the airport and not seen as often.

By Bubba

December 3, 2008 1:21 PM | Link to this

I say charge the fare, but if congestion, or an accident, or whatever, occurs such that you just paid to be slow like everybody else, then you should get a refund. The service of the fare “did not perform in the manner for which it was advertised.”

By The Way

December 3, 2008 2:59 PM | Link to this

The toll road reduces available lanes by as much as 33 percent. Of course it doesn’t work, it only rewards those who got rich by cheating others and taking bribes and selling out, and being evil christian conservative hypocrits like Sen Craig, who sounded taps at Conservatism’s funeral, with his flag at halfmast.

But lets not stop them. Let the rich and affluent big shots have their private lanes. We’ll know who they are. We’ll know their license plate numbers. We’ll know their cars. We’ll know their faces, their addresses and everything.

I am the leader that the real america has been waiting for since G. Washington creamed Cornwallis. (like that? Creamed Corn…wallis).

Everything I write is great. Dont U agree?

Word up. Peace out. Popacapinyourass. OMG, I just thug-rapped again!

Do I rule the blog world or what? Can you find a better blogger? Am I the best? The very very best?

Yes. I am. I know. You know it. The American People know it, and that’s why, I am the emerging leader. I am the one. I am what everyone thinks Obama is.

He’s like my St. John the Baptist, okay?

So who do I think I am?

I am the Christman.

Not the christ. Not just a man.

but a hybrid dude that is half christ, half man, and all I had 2do2 become this hybrid deity is to love myself, thus, you can be a christman 2. Love yourself, and join me.

Love yourself.

Love yourself.

Love Yourself. That’s how you change the world. Take care of yourself first. Love U. You’re amazing. Y not love U? Love yourself deeply as much as you would love God. Love God as yourself.

Well, most people never understood what Christ was saying. “Love God as yourself.”

Get it? Love yourself, you horrid morons.

ISAIDLOVEYOURSELF!!!!!!

jklol

By LT5000

December 3, 2008 4:30 PM | Link to this

Where’s Blubbering Brucie today?

Perhaps he hung himself with his own shoelaces after the Chambliss won last night.

Maybe Sarah Palin was more effective than he thought.

Two things you can always count on. Taxes and Brucie proving what an idiot he is.

Now all we need is NOWICUVME to come along and claim that the toll lanes are part of the white racist power structure.

LT5000

By nana

December 3, 2008 9:28 PM | Link to this

I would like to know where these Lexxus lanes are already in use and how have they worked out there? I agree with others on this blog we already paid for th HOV lanes with tax money why should we have to pay to use them? If there are two or more people in the car a person should be able to use the HOV lane. I can think of a lot of better uses for this money. BTW who is impersonating LT on 12-3-08 @ 5:56???

By BW

December 4, 2008 12:02 AM | Link to this

Chambliss won, for, LT WE ARE IN RECESSION, I didn’t expect anything different, like I said in the other column, this is one of the few states that voted for McBush, I mean really, do you think they be any smarter voting for a Senator?

I agree with Ralph, our money, our highway.

In New York State we have the Thurway, a toll road (highway) from New York City to Buffalo, built in the 50’s and supposed to pay for itself by the 70’s, IT DID. But now comes the well’s, because it covered so many counties, you know the answer already, they would be responsibility of maintaining the road and bridges, naturally without the tolls.

If you ever go to New York the best deal you can find is the Thurway, still a toll road with services you would not believe, full-service gas stations, chain food at rest stops, overall it’s worth paying for.

The difference between a Thurway and a Lexus Lane is “The People” actually had to vote on the Thruway.

By Shawny

December 4, 2008 9:46 AM | Link to this

stupid, stupid, stupid. There is no need for this. Fixing interchanges that bog down traffic, such as the 316 interchange, the exit only lane at 317 that eased the flow off of the access road, extending the HOV to Old Peachtree helped too. The BEST thing to ease the afternoon rush back into Gwinnett would be to extend the HOV to just past the Hwy 20 MOG exit.

The HOV works great as is. It encourages carpooling, but you do not want to discourage 2 person carpools by making them pay. I am in a carpool now and all of us can’t get together all the time, so very frequently, we are two at a time. Make us pay and you discourage carpooling, even for more than 2, due to scheduling conflicts, vacations, work travel, etc. that forces 1 or more our of the carpool temporarily.

DONT DO IT.

Keep all carpools in for free and make single drivers pay, then I am ok with it.

By Shawny

December 4, 2008 9:49 AM | Link to this

I think there should be a statewide initiative to reduce vehicle accidents, which contribute to the bulk of the problems, assuming roads and interchanges are adequate.

My proposal, is to have the person that caused the accident to stand beside his car, handcuffed to the doorhandle. Every person inconvenienced by the backup has the opportunity to pull over and pound him/her in the face one time. Won’t speed up traffic on that particular day, but as word gets around, may be a deterrent for future idiots.

By LT5000

December 4, 2008 9:57 AM | Link to this

Nana,

Impersonation is the sincerest form of flattery.

Brucie, show me two consecutive quarters of negative GDP growth, the classical definition of a Recession and I will accept your premise. Otherwise, you are just proving to the world what a hyperventilating moron that you really are.

Just because the boys behind Quik Trip are charging you less, doesn’t mean there is a Recession.

LT5000

By Three Man Rush

December 4, 2008 9:58 AM | Link to this

Less lanes for the rest of us? I dont think so.

By smile-ee

December 4, 2008 12:14 PM | Link to this

@ Shawny- 9:49am…. LOVE_IT!!!! What a great idea, might cut down on road rage too

By Charls

December 4, 2008 12:17 PM | Link to this

LT5000- A recession, as defined by nber.org, has been underway since Dec. ‘07. From their website:

*Q: Why doesn’t the committee accept the two-quarter definition?

A: The committee’s procedure for identifying turning points differs from the two-quarter rule in a number of ways. First, we do not identify economic activity solely with real GDP, but use a range of indicators. Second, we place considerable emphasis on monthly indicators in arriving at a monthly chronology. Third, we consider the depth of the decline in economic activity. Recall that our definition includes the phrase, “a significant decline in activity.” Fourth, in examining the behavior of domestic production, we consider not only the conventional product-side GDP estimates, but also the conceptually equivalent income-side GDI estimates. The differences between these two sets of estimates were particularly evident in 2007 and 2008.*

Go with the “I’m only calling it a recession if it has 2 declining quarters” if you wish, but you’d be depriving yourself of valuable information.

source:http://wwwdev.nber.org/cycles/dec2008.html

By Three Man Rush

December 5, 2008 7:47 AM | Link to this

If Bush wouldn’t level with us about the economy even though we were the ones being hurt by it, then imagine what the true state of the war in Iraq is, when the Iraqi people are the ones being hurt by it. (Good thing the surge is working)

What Bush has started, people, and you better sit down, can be explained thusly: A Peter-Pricipled (PP) Commander-in-name-only (CINO) has tripped a Rube Goldberg Machine (RGM) setting off a Domino Theory (DT) of chain reactions of Diverse Industry Perfect Storms (DIPS) which has produced a global meltdown of a once hot global economic destiny.

We’re forked, folks.

There wasn’t supposed to be a war in Iraq.

Because of the peril the entire world is in, W is mankind’s greatest monkey, (MGM), and Paris Hilton’s new BFF is once again diamonds. (Diamonds are a girls BFF).

Then, worse, W tricked us all again into bailing out the credit markets with a chicken little littany of possible catastrophes that could befall us all. The horse was already out of the barn, and we fell for it again. That money is in the hands of the elite, and they are sitting on it, knowing what lies dead ahead.

We are on the cusp of a new economic civil war: the W administration cronies and their 700 billion dollar bailout, against 299 million Broke Americans. The last 8 years would have been better for us if we had surrendered on 911. The chinese just executed a fraud in a case where investors got bilked. Who’s for sending W’s entire crew of cronies and phonies to China, and let them prosecute?

JKLOL

BTW: 700 billion is a joke. Bush is in to us for over three trillion. 700 billion we could handle. Three trillion ruins us.

Many of you dont know how much money three trillion dollars (TTD) is: If you stacked the money in a huge pile like a pyramid, it would take the egyptian slaves 50 billion years just to launder it, much less count it and stack it in piles, and then add another 10 billion years to open all the tax-free offshore accounts. Throw in a few days to print counterfeit money to replace all the real money, (the pharoah’s dead, he’ll never know), and you get an idea here.

I am making a formal citizens arrest of W here and now on this blog. I will ask the president to surrender himself to the nearest police station for booking. The charge is the entire Bible. The sentence is to be sent into hell for all eternity.

Book him, Don-oh.

By Oscar (the grouch)

December 5, 2008 11:13 AM | Link to this

TAX,TAX,TAX…..and this just in recycle or pay a $500 dollar fine-GCB

CRAP ! I can’t afford to leave the county…