Implementation and Evaluation of Automated Vehicle Occupancy Verification

Given widespread plans for development of high-occupancy vehcile (HOV) and high-occuapncy toll (HOT) lanes in a number of metropolitan areas, improved vehicle occupancy verification techniques and the the legal and institutional barriers to their implementation urgently need to be explored. This report reviews the process of identifying, selecting and testing concepts and methods for automated vehicle occupancy verification (AVOV) that can be adopted for future field implementation. The evaluation of automated enforcement via the use of roadside infrared camera gives an overview of the technology selection process and the specific features of the selected equipment. Surveys of self-declaration systems and implementations provide descriptions of several types of transponders. A discussion of the enforcement, regulations and privacy factors in utilizing transponder technology follows.