Cops: HOV Lane Occupants Need to Be 'Actual People'

California highway cops say one Bay Area driver will face a hefty fine for having a dummy in their car. Officers pulled over a vehicle Monday after noticing the front-seat "passenger" slumped in a blue hoodie and sun hat didn't seem to have a face, AFP reports. The California Highway Patrol quickly determined the rider was a dummy—literally—and posted a photo of the mannequin on Facebook, along with a warning: "HOV occupants need to be actual people, not your arts and crafts project."

High-occupancy vehicle lanes are meant to cut congestion by rewarding car-sharing, typically requiring at least two human occupants. The penalty for trying to cheat the system isn't make-believe: violators can face a fine of about $490, according to Caltrans, which operates California's freeways. "The toll evasion citation probably cost a lot more than the toll itself," the CHP said. Officers didn't say exactly where the driver was pulled over, but the photo was posted by the CHP's Hayward division, which mainly covers the East Bay, KRON 4 reports.