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A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
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AN ACT
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relating to the establishment and operation of a motor-bus-only |
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lane pilot program in certain counties. |
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BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS: |
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SECTION 1. Chapter 455, Transportation Code, is amended by |
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adding Section 455.006 to read as follows: |
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Sec. 455.006. MOTOR-BUS-ONLY LANE PILOT PROGRAM. (a) The |
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department, in consultation with the Department of Public Safety |
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and in conjunction with and with the elective participation of the |
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appropriate metropolitan rapid transit authorities, county |
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transportation authorities, municipal transit departments, and |
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regional transportation authorities and the municipalities served |
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by those mass transit entities, shall establish and operate a |
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motor-bus-only lane pilot program for highways that are part of the |
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state highway system and have shoulders of sufficient width and |
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structural integrity. |
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(b) A highway designated as part of the program must be |
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located in: |
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(1) Bexar, El Paso, Tarrant, or Travis County; or |
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(2) a county adjacent to a county listed in |
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Subdivision (1) if the highway is an extension of a highway |
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designated in a county listed in Subdivision (1). |
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(c) The program shall: |
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(1) provide for the use by motor buses of highway |
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shoulders as a low-speed bypass of congested highway lanes when the |
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speed of vehicles being operated on the main traveled part of the |
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adjacent highways is 35 miles per hour or less; |
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(2) limit the maximum speed of a motor bus being |
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operated on a motor-bus-only lane to the lower of: |
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(A) 15 miles per hour greater than the speed of |
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vehicles being operated on the main traveled part of the adjacent |
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highway; or |
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(B) 35 miles per hour; |
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(3) provide for attainment of local operational |
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experience with the conversion of existing highway shoulders to |
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motor-bus-only lanes during peak traffic periods; |
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(4) include consideration of the following: |
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(A) safety; |
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(B) travel time and reliability; |
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(C) driver and passenger perceptions; |
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(D) level of service and maintenance; and |
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(E) capital improvements; and |
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(5) be limited only to public transit motor buses |
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operated by the mass transit entities in the counties specified by |
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Subsection (b). |
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(d) The department shall also include in the program: |
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(1) bus driver safety training; |
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(2) public awareness and education; |
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(3) bus operating rules that require bus drivers to |
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yield to passenger cars and emergency vehicles; and |
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(4) roadside signs and pavement markings indicating |
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that affected lanes are reserved for public transit motor-bus-only |
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use. |
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(e) The department, in coordination with the appropriate |
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mass transit entities under Subsection (a), shall fund the |
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implementation of the program features under Subsection (d). Mass |
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transit entities that participate in the program shall reimburse |
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the department for the funds spent on implementation of the program |
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features. A metropolitan rapid transit authority that includes an |
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advanced transportation district may use funds from the district to |
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pay for expenses associated with the pilot program. |
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(f) The department shall initiate the motor-bus-only lane |
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pilot program as soon as practicable but not later than December 31, |
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2015. Not later than December 31, 2017, the department shall submit |
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to the governor, the lieutenant governor, the speaker of the house |
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of representatives, and the presiding officer of each legislative |
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standing committee with primary jurisdiction over transportation a |
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written report that contains: |
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(1) a description of the results of the program based |
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on local operational experience described in Subsection (c)(3); |
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(2) any recommendations for changes to the program; |
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and |
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(3) a plan on how the department will convert the |
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program into a permanent program. |
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(g) The department may cancel the program if the department |
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finds evidence of a trend of increasing vehicle accidents |
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attributable to operation of buses under the program. |
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(h) Notwithstanding Subsection (a), the department may not |
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establish or operate a motor-bus-only lane on a highway or toll |
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facility maintained by a regional tollway authority established |
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under Chapter 366 without the authority's consent. |
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SECTION 2. Section 542.002, Transportation Code, is amended |
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to read as follows: |
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Sec. 542.002. GOVERNMENT VEHICLES. A provision of this |
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subtitle applicable to an operator of a vehicle applies to the |
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operator of a vehicle owned or operated by the United States, this |
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state, or a political subdivision of this state, except as |
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specifically provided otherwise by this subtitle [for an authorized
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emergency vehicle]. |
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SECTION 3. Section 545.058(c), Transportation Code, is |
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amended to read as follows: |
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(c) A limitation in this section on driving on an improved |
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shoulder does not apply to: |
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(1) an authorized emergency vehicle responding to a |
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call; |
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(2) a police patrol; [or] |
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(3) a bicycle; or |
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(4) a motor bus of a mass transit entity described by |
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Section 455.006 operating on a shoulder designated by the Texas |
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Department of Transportation under that section. |
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SECTION 4. This Act takes effect immediately if it receives |
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a vote of two-thirds of all the members elected to each house, as |
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provided by Section 39, Article III, Texas Constitution. If this |
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Act does not receive the vote necessary for immediate effect, this |
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Act takes effect September 1, 2015. |