Commuters who share cars could be allowed to use a special lane on the M62 near Bradford, the Government has revealed.

The pilot scheme, which aims to crack congestion on the motorway, may take place between junctions 25 at Brighouse and 27 at Gildersome.

A study is to be carried out by the Highways Agency to assess the feasibility of introducing such a lane onto the M62 which is a congestion hotspot.

Transport Secretary Alistair Darling said the car pool lane would be reserved for vehicles carrying two or more people although a start date has yet to be fixed for the pilot.

Ministers are studying ways of punishing lone drivers who use the high occupancy vehicle (HOV) lanes which are being introduced on the most congested motorways in the country.

A similar scheme already operates along the Stanningley by-pass in Leeds.

It is thought police officers would monitor the lane and fine law-breakers. Mr Darling said: "The Government is determined to tackle congestion on Britain's roads. Car pool lanes help drivers carrying several people by providing dedicated lanes. This makes best use of scarce capacity on our roads."

Car pool lanes have been used successfully in the USA and Australia, said Mr Darling.

The car pool lane on the M62 could be created by using the hard-shoulder or widening the motorway.

A Transport Department spokesman said: "In general the Government favours providing extra capacity for car pool lanes, but in this particular case it might be possible to use one of the existing lanes."

The Highways Agency, which runs Britain's motorway network, will also run studies on the M3 in London, M1 between Milton Keynes and St Albans, and M61 in Manchester. From these four studies one will be chosen to pilot the HOV scheme.

The plan is bound to attract criticism from environmental groups. Friends of the Earth spokesman Tony Bosworth said it was important to encourage people to share cars. But he warned wider motorways would attract more traffic.

However, the AA Motoring Trust said the plans would only affect a few hundred miles of the worst roads and would not cut into vast tracts of greenery.