Q: Virginia Minder of Corona complained about the many solo drivers who are illegally using the carpool lane on the 91 Freeway, a common problem on all freeways. Minder asked if the California Highway Patrol would consider using one “unannounced” day per month to send unmarked CHP cars out into the freeways to catch these illegal drivers. She wondered what can be done to combat this problem.
A: We passed this note on to folks in the CHP Inland Division. Officer Ivan Sandoval said CHP officials do regularly conduct enforcement operations targeting improper use of carpool lanes.
Officers have been known to cite drivers attempting to evade the carpool lanes by using mannequins, wrapped up jackets, objects in baby car seats and other things to pose as passengers.
Sandoval would like to remind people that many scofflaws are caught – you just don’t often see the traffic stops because they are pulled over off the freeway for safety reasons.
Traffic agencies are fighting back with cameras, too.
In Riverside County, a new detection system using cameras is now in place on the 91 Freeway express lanes to catch cheaters.
Since August 2025, the cameras have been peering into cars traveling the exclusive pay-to-use lanes in the middle of the 91 Freeway between the 15 Freeway in Corona and the Orange County line.
RELATED: 91 Freeway cameras catch carpool lane cheaters in Corona
The cameras take a “burst” of eight photos as a car passes through a gate where drivers declare they are either paying the full toll, or claiming the free or discounted ride afforded carpools. Drivers claim the discount by moving into a designated HOV or high-occupancy-vehicle lane.
The cameras capture images inside cars day and night and can look through dark window tint. If a car is is suspected of not complying with the passenger requirement, then it goes to a human for review.
In San Bernardino County, the San Bernardino Transportation Authority this summer is starting a four-month pilot program using new camera and AI technology on the 10 Freeway express lanes.
Advanced imaging and artificial intelligence will be used to count passengers inside a vehicle as it goes through tolling points. Unlike app‑based systems which rely on drivers being honest about who is in their car, this program works automatically and will provide results that can be verified, the authority said.
Non-alcoholic drinking and driving?
Q: “With so many people switching to non-alcoholic beverages, I am wondering if it is legal to consume or possess an open container while driving, drinking beverages like Bud Zero, which claim to have no alcohol,” asked Steve Wilson of Forest Falls, in San Bernardino County.
A: The issue here is whether the beverage really has zero alcohol, or just a little alcohol. Some so-called “alcohol-free” drinks actually contain a very small percentage of alcohol, and those are illegal to drink or have opened in a vehicle while driving, said Riverside police Sgt. Dan Macias of the traffic bureau/technical services unit.
California Vehicle Code section 23222(a) says, “A person shall not have in their possession on their person, while driving a motor vehicle upon a highway or on lands, as described in subdivision (c) of Section 23220, a bottle, can, or other receptacle, containing an alcoholic beverage which has been opened, or a seal broken, or the contents of which have been partially removed.”
Therefore, as long as the drink product really contains zero alcohol, it may be consumed and opened while operating a motor vehicle, Macias said.
Do you commute to work in the Inland Empire? Spend a lot of time in your vehicle? Have questions about driving, freeways, toll roads or parking? If so, write or call On the Road and we’ll try to answer your questions. Please include your question or issue, name, city of residence, phone number and email address. Write ontheroad@scng.com or call 951-368-9995. Note that we may use material from letters or phone calls in future columns.