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By Debbie Messina The Virginian-Pilot May 11, 2012 Big transportation decisions will be made in the coming years thatcould affect everything from your wallet to where you work or live. State officials have been gathering public comments on three megaroad projects under consideration: expanding the Hampton RoadsBridge-Tunnel, building a Patriots Crossing, and wideningInterstate 64 to Richmond. While public input will help shape what is recommended, ultimatelyit will be up to local elected leaders who sit on the Hampton RoadsTransportation Planning Organization board to decide which, if any,to build and whether they'll be tolled. "It's intuitively obvious we can't afford them simultaneously,so it will come down to choices, which involvesprioritization," said Dwight Farmer, executive director of thetransportation planning group. "We'll be looking at impacts ontravel, economic development and community pacts. Or is any of itaffordable or financially palatable." Virginia highway officials have said there will be no state moneyfor new construction by 2017 as growing maintenance needs gobbleall of a shrinking transportation revenue stream. The Virginia Department of Transportation has already turned toprivate partnerships with tolls to get roads built - it signed anagreement for an expansion of the Midtown Tunnel between Norfolkand Portsmouth and is moving through a similar process to rebuildU.S. 460 as a limited-access highway. "I think particularly in Hampton Roads, with our needs forbridges and tunnels, tolls will have to be part of thesolution," Farmer said. "And hopefully, we may find somenew tools in the near future to help pay for them as well." All three projects are listed as potential public-privatepartnerships on VDOT's website. The HRBT expansion has alreadyreceived three private proposals that have been temporarily put onhold until the study is complete. Six public meetings were held last month on the projects to shareinformation and seek opinions as transportation planners developthe projects. The meetings for the Patriots Crossing, a bridge and tunnel thatconnects Norfolk from around the port and Norfolk Naval Stationwith the Monitor-Merrimac Memorial Bridge-Tunnel, was a requiredstep in the process of re-evaluating a previously approved study ofa larger proposed third bridge-tunnel to the Peninsula. They werethe best-attended, with nearly 200 citizens and consultants. The meetings on the HRBT and I-64 were not required in the studyprocess, but officials thought it was important to get informationout early. About 75 people attended the meetings on the HRBT andabout 40 on I-64. More public meetings will be held later this yearand early next year on these two projects once they are furtherdeveloped. "Early on is the time we want input," VDOT districtadministrator Dennis Heuer said. "If you wait until the endand you criticize the document and say you don't like the project,it's too late." Because the Patriots Crossing is an update to a previous study,it's not exploring multiple construction alternatives. The HRBT and I-64 studies will narrow the options for each project. For the HRBT widening, the study team is exploring expanding fromfour lanes to either eight or 10 lanes. For the I-64 widening between I-664 in Hampton to I-95 in Richmond,they're looking at adding one to three additional lanes in eachdirection, depending on the section of interstate. The optionsinclude building lanes inside the current lanes, outside thecurrent lanes or both. Chris Collins, VDOT environmental manager, said a toll diversionstudy will be done as part of both studies to help find theappropriate breadth of the project. He said if tolls become afunding mechanism, fewer lanes may be needed because a toll couldsuppress demand for the road. While funding the projects is not part of the studies, it wasforemost on most people's minds at the hearings. "Tolls are OK as long as they're not exorbitant," saidRandy Bradsher of Newport News. "People using the road will bepaying for it." Don Musacchio of Norfolk believes the least painful way to pay forthem is a gas or sales tax increase: "It's a sharedresponsibility for the common good." Eileen Leininger of Poquoson said she'd prefer that the stateborrow more money for road construction. Debbie Messina, 757-446-2588, debbie.messina@pilotonline.com. I am an expert from householdwaterpurifiers.com, while we provides the quality product, such as Commercial Water Purifier , Ozone Air Purifiers Manufacturer, Portable Water Purifier,and more.
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