Shoppers in California considering a plug-in hybrid have some good news to start the year: carpool lane stickers are back.

This is great news for shoppers since the supply of 55,000 Clean Air Vehicle stickers for plug-in hybrids was exhausted last September. Thanks to legislation, an additional 15,000 stickers became available on January 1.

High-Occupancy Vehicle (HOV) lane access continues to be one of the top motivators for purchasing plug-in hybrids according to the Center for Sustainable Energy. Perhaps this isn't surprising, however: who wouldn't want the power to move in and out of the carpool lane and have a shorter commute?

Surprisingly, for many buyers, the Center for Sustainable Energy found that HOV lane access was even more important than saving money. With the average price of gas at record-low levels, we expect HOV lane access to become even more of a key selling point when shopping for plug-ins.

While it's too soon to tell if prices will fall now that more stickers are available, one thing is for certain: they will go quickly and shoppers shouldn't wait too long.

Top-Selling Plug-in Hybrids





2015 Toyota Prius Plug-in

MSRP: $35,730

2015 Chevrolet Volt

MSRP: $35,155

2015 Ford C-Max Energi

MSRP: $32,595