Source: Mr. Roadshow, San Jose Mercury News 11/7/05 (http://www.bayarea.com)
Q: Two months ago we received the carpool sticker for our Prius and, surprisingly, now carpool even more frequently because the Prius driver (usually me) feels guilty about leaving her spouse in traffic. You could even say we're doing double-duty for the environment, encouraged by the carpool access sticker. But . . .
Tammi Hersrud
Hollister,CA
A: I've got a feeling this is not a happy hybrid-carpool tale.
Q: Friday morning we couldn't carpool, so my husband won the Prius arm-wrestle and off he went to work -- and got the first negative carpool reaction and it almost killed him. He was tootling up 101 near 85, when a sport-utility vehicle pulled up alongside, the driver blowing his horn, red-faced and yelling out the window and pointing at the empty passenger seat. The driver then tried to force hubby off the road, cutting into him and almost sending him into the concrete barrier. For the next few miles the driver alternately drove in front and slammed on his brakes, trying to cause a rear-ender, or pulled behind and tailgated and flashed his lights. And he continued to yell out the window and point at the empty passenger seat. It's frightening to think how close our family came to a tragedy. It's ironic that the angry driver was in a gas-guzzling SUV, usually the target for angry drivers. Of course 911 was called and the license plate reported, but can police actually do anything?
Tammi Hersrud
A: They will send a letter to the registered owner warning him to behave. I hope he understands the risks he caused your husband, himself and others on the freeway. Many drivers are upset at people they suspect are carpool cheaters, but we're not the police. Many solo drivers in hybrids are legally using the diamond lane. Let them be.
Q: Two months ago we received the carpool sticker for our Prius and, surprisingly, now carpool even more frequently because the Prius driver (usually me) feels guilty about leaving her spouse in traffic. You could even say we're doing double-duty for the environment, encouraged by the carpool access sticker. But . . .
Tammi Hersrud
Hollister,CA
A: I've got a feeling this is not a happy hybrid-carpool tale.
Q: Friday morning we couldn't carpool, so my husband won the Prius arm-wrestle and off he went to work -- and got the first negative carpool reaction and it almost killed him. He was tootling up 101 near 85, when a sport-utility vehicle pulled up alongside, the driver blowing his horn, red-faced and yelling out the window and pointing at the empty passenger seat. The driver then tried to force hubby off the road, cutting into him and almost sending him into the concrete barrier. For the next few miles the driver alternately drove in front and slammed on his brakes, trying to cause a rear-ender, or pulled behind and tailgated and flashed his lights. And he continued to yell out the window and point at the empty passenger seat. It's frightening to think how close our family came to a tragedy. It's ironic that the angry driver was in a gas-guzzling SUV, usually the target for angry drivers. Of course 911 was called and the license plate reported, but can police actually do anything?
Tammi Hersrud
A: They will send a letter to the registered owner warning him to behave. I hope he understands the risks he caused your husband, himself and others on the freeway. Many drivers are upset at people they suspect are carpool cheaters, but we're not the police. Many solo drivers in hybrids are legally using the diamond lane. Let them be.
