Is this the answer for Hampton Roads?
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Published April 8th, 2008
The biggest traffic congestion chokepoint - The Hampton Roads Bridge Tunnel. The most expensive part of any solution - tunnels. But is the only answer underwater? Some Delegates don’t think so.
The most frequently said words over the last week in transportation circles has been “the San Diego-Coronado Bridge.” It’s works fine with Naval Station San Diego, spans over 11,000 feet, and reaches heights of 200 ft. The HRBT covers 3.5 miles compared to the 2-mile San Diego bridge, but engineers are looking at the option and with costs savings from 30-50% over tunnel options, some leaders think it’s certainly an attractive one and could be one of those architectural wonders that gains worldwide notice.
More on the Coronado bridge here.
It might work for the HRBT.
However, can it go multimodal? Anyone enough of a rail expert to know if you could run a line at a 4.67 grade?
The Coronado bridge is up channel from the carrier berths. I’m not sure a carrier could pass under the Coronado bridge. Even with floating sections a bridge over the only navigable channel in Hampton Roads is questionalbe. I think a lot of money will be spent determining the feasibility that will further delay proceeding with the only practical solution which is an additional tunnel.
Reread the Wikipedia entry:
1. The bridge is 200 feet.
2. The carriers at San Diego are 201 feet.
Oops!
This might be an idea to look at. Yes, I feel the HRBT *must* be included in any transportation plan. Too bad the Federal Railroad Admin says light rail (e.g. The Tide) and heavy rail (e.g. freight, Amtrak, VRE Commuter Rail) MUST be separated; yes it does make perfect sense due to weight difference. What I think: Using Mayor Fraim’s proposal (which, I think, won’t relieve the congestion): one extra tunnel for traffic + one more tunnel for the Southside Peninsula Tide (I’m using “Tide” as a placemark name, HRT has no name for any of the Peninsula transit segments) for a total of two new tunnels. I think, at min, there should be 4-5 lanes of travel per direction. To pay for it? In part, bring back the Strawberry Banks Toll Plaza (this would not be the only funding source).