High Occupancy Vehicle lanes have been in place on Metro Vancouver highways for more than a decade. But one former city councillor admits that they've been a failure.

Highway 1 commuters know to expect delays, especially during peak hours, but recent construction has been making the route slower than ever.

The faster moving HOV lane -- reserved for cars with two or more passengers -- can be a real time-saver. But the lane, which is designed to reward car-poolers, is often too tempting for cheaters, who routinely use it despite the risk of a $109 fine.

Police say they ticket an average of five HOV violators a day on Highway 1. That isn't very many considering 127,000 drivers use the highway every day.

Many cheaters think it's worth the risk. Within two minutes, CTV News spotted three single occupancy cars breaking the rules

Former Vancouver city councillor Gordon Price was on the GVRD board that recommended the HOV lanes in the 1990s and admits that the project has been a failure because the honour system isn't working.

"I think most planners and I would say it was a good first try but not in the long run," he said.

Other cities such as San Francisco have dealt with the issue by charging single occupancy vehicles to use their express lanes.

Price thinks that these high occupancy toll lanes could work in Vancouver too.

"In the case of the San Francisco one that is opening up this week, it varies by time of day. So middle of the night -- free or very small amount of money. Rush hour -- maybe four or five or six dollars. So people can get the advantage if they're prepared to pay that additional amount and that justifies enforcement," he said.

However, the provincial government has already considered and vetoed the idea. Pam Ryan, spokeswoman for the Port Mann/Highway 1 Improvement project, said that charging for the lanes would defeat their purpose.

"What that would mean if we were to allow people to pay for the privilege of using that is you're taking away from the benefits -- the travel time savings of benefits -- for those people who are able to carpool. And it really runs contrary to one of the key goals that we had for this project," she said.

That means for now, the HOV lanes – and the people who use them unlawfully – are here to stay.