I am sure that someone on here knows the answer to this... I am confused by the HOV Left Lane signs on 290. For outbound traffic, they state that they are for HOV 2+ riders between 6am and 9am. Inbound HOV Left Lane signs state that they are for HOV 2+ riders M-F 3:30pm through 7pm. Wouldn't you want your HOV left lanes to be operational during peak traffic flow patterns, matching the barrier HOV lane traffic? If so, wouldn't these times be reversed...

The purpose was for Metro busses to have a relatively clear route back out/in as the middle reversible HOV lane would be used in the direction of rush hour.

So during morning rush hour, they use the reversible lane inbound and then use the signed lane to get back out to the park and ride to make another cycle back in faster. Flip it all for evening rush hour.

YellAg2004 said:

---

The purpose was for Metro busses to have a relatively clear route back out/in as the middle reversible HOV lane would be used in the direction of rush hour.

So during morning rush hour, they use the reversible lane inbound and then use the signed lane to get back out to the park and ride to make another cycle back in faster. Flip it all for evening rush hour.

---

This probably played a factor in it, but the official reason is for reverse commuting.

https://abc13.com/houston-traffic-highway-290-hov-lanes-reverse-commuting/10387819/