Today's Why Guy question from Laurie Adams Oliver: "Hi Walt, I have a WHY GUY. A lot of time and money went into upgrading the 80 freeway 'up across the top' from Truxel to around Watt. WHY are the carpool lanes in both directions so dang bumpy? It feels like the Old Sac cobblestone street. WHY?"
Best way to figure this one out is hitting the freeway. But we wanted to check with Cal Trans first, to see if they wanted to weigh in on Laurie's question.
"We always appreciate hearing from motorists and while we value their opinion, we have driven this stretch many times and don't feel it's a current issue" Cal Trans spokesperson Dennis Keaton said in a statement.
Well, let's see for ourselves. We set sail on both the east and westbound stretches of Interstate 80 that Laurie says is a rough patch. Traffic was light and moving with the flow, which was obviously a good time for us to drive it both ways.
We traveled in each of the five lanes of highway in the that stretch on both sides, starting with the slow lane first (No. 5 lane), and moving from lane to lane all the way to the carpool land (No. 1 lane).
READ MORE FROM WALT GRAY:
In the No. 2 lane, heading towards Truxel Road to Sacramento — not bad at all. We switched over to the HOV lane to see if we can figure this out. We found the HOV lane to be bumpier than the other lanes. Not cobblestone bumpy, but definitely bumpy.
So, I'd have to somewhat agree with Laurie's question.
After checking for ourselves, we checked back in with Dennis Keaton from Cal Trans, who told us he "will try to pay closer attention the next time I'm driving that way."
As for our Why Guy questioner, Laurie, she's just happy to know she's not alone. "Awesome! I drive for Lyft in the mornings and need the HOV lanes, so my passengers and I thank you very much!"
Our pleasure, Laurie.
So, next time you drive the HOV lanes on I-80 both ways between Truxel and Watt, let us know what you think.
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