Carpooling with a corpse: NHP deems hearse an HOV-lane violator

Southern Nevada drivers desperate to access the recently opened high-occupancy vehicle lanes on Interstate 15 can cross off one unusual strategy: Dead bodies don't count as passengers.

Nevada Highway Patrol explained its enforcement position Monday via social media after a local funeral-home hearse was pulled over in an HOV lane.

While the specialty lanes are designated for vehicles with two or more occupants, the hearse driver assumed the cargo counted toward the requirement.

NHP said in its tweet: "I guess we should clarify this, living, breathing people count for the HOV lane."

The HOV lanes opened May 20 as part of Project Neon, a nearly $1 billion project to widen I-15 from the U.S. 95 interchange to Sahara Avenue.

Motorists breaking the rules for driving in the lanes started risking $250 citations on June 20. The hearse driver was only issued a warning.