COMMENTARY - Curse of the Carpool Lane?

I hate Phoenix.  (Did I mention that already?)  Escpecially driving in it.  Now, it's not nearly as bad as it was a year ago before I left, when they were just realizing that the freeways were way too small for the number of people driving on them, and everything was under construction while they worked frantically to correct this problem with additional lanes.  It took me 45 minutes for a 6 mile commute in those days.  But now the construction is finished, and we now have something like a 12 lane wide freeway of total chaos instead of a six lane one.  Everyone still drives like a maniac, now there's just extra room to do it in.  The traffic is appalling, after moving back here from a relatively small town.  Where are all these people going at 2:00 in the afternoon?  Shouldn't they be at work or something?  Between the still crowded freeways and the 120 degree heat, it's no wonder road rage is so prevalent here.  But I noticed an interesting phenomenon on my drive today.  Even with everyone driving like they're Mad Max, the carpool lane stays astonishingly clear.  I saw countless idiots go screaming by, weaving in and out of six lanes of traffic in a futile effort to get in front of rush hour, yet not a single one of them veered as far left as to illegally enter the carpool lane.  I am still baffled by the reasoning for this.  With such blatant disregard for the equally visible speed limit signs, what makes them heed the regulations of the carpool lane?  Amidst all the chaos on the rest of the freeway, that far left lane somehow inexplicably remains an aisle of tranquility.  Part of the reasoning I'm sure is that if you are caught, it's a ticket you can't talk your way out of.  You may be able to get away with "Honestly officer, my speedometer said I was only going 65, it must be off by 30 miles per hour...", or "It's not my fault I rear ended him while I was weaving in and out of traffic, he slammed on his brakes on purpose!"  But what are you going to say if you get pulled over for abusing the carpool lane?  "No really, I had a passenger with me, he just jumped out on me in the middle of the freeway just before you pulled me over!"  Good luck with that one.  Yet even so, you'd think there would still be that handful of idiots that would tempt fate and slip into the carpool lane anyway, just to see how long they can get away with it.  Not once did I see this happen though.  So what is this unseen force keeping the carpool lane clear?  I have yet to discover the answer to this unusual phenomenon, but deem it worth further investigation.  The best way to do this would be for me to illegally enter the carpool lane myself the next time I am out driving, and see what happens.  Wish me luck...