Hampton Roads Bridge–Tunnel
| Hampton Roads Bridge–Tunnel | |
|---|---|
 |
|
| Coordinates | 36°59′14″N 76°18′20″W / 36.987197°N 76.305542°WCoordinates: 36°59′14″N 76°18′20″W / 36.987197°N 76.305542°W |
| Carries | 4 lanes of   I‑64 / US 60
|
| Crosses | Hampton Roads |
| Locale | Norfolk, Virginia to Hampton, Virginia |
| Maintained by | Virginia Department of Transportation |
| Characteristics | |
| Design | Composite: Low-level Trestle, Parallel single-tube Tunnels, Manmade islands |
| Total length | 3.5 miles (5.6 km) |
| Clearance above | 14'6"/4.42m (eastbound) 13'6"/4.11m (westbound) |
| History | |
| Opened | November 1, 1957 (westbound) November 1, 1976 (eastbound) |
Map of the Hampton Roads Bridge Tunnel and vicinity
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| Location | Hampton Roads, Virginia |
|---|---|
| Proposer | VDOT |
| Website | HRCS Website |
| Status | in final Environmental planning phase |
| Type | new bridge tunnel and widening of highway to six lanes |
| Cost estimate | $3.3 billion USD |
| Completion date | 2024 |
| Stakeholders | VDOT, Cities of Hampton, Norfolk |
The Hampton Roads Bridge–Tunnel (HRBT) is a 3.5-mile (5.6 km)-long Hampton Roads crossing for Interstate 64 and U.S. Route 60. It is a four-lane facility comprising bridges, trestles, man-made islands, and tunnels under the main shipping channels for Hampton Roads harbor in the southeastern portion of Virginia in the United States.
It connects the historic Phoebus area of the independent city of Hampton near Fort Monroe on the Virginia Peninsula with Willoughby Spit in the city of Norfolk in South Hampton Roads, and is part of the Hampton Roads Beltway.
Prior to the opening of the HRBT (and well before even the HRBT's counterpart the Monitor–Merrimac Memorial Bridge–Tunnel), VDOT operated ferries to carry vehicle traffic across the harbor from the Southside to the Peninsula. There were two routes: one from Hampton Boulevard near Naval Station Norfolk to downtown Newport News, and a second, less popular route from Willoughby Spit to Fort Monroe in Hampton. Traffic at the time was typically about 2500 vehicles per day. The original two-lane structure opened November 1, 1957 at a cost of $44 million as a toll facility. As population and traffic grew, construction on a parallel bridge-tunnel facility began in 1972. The construction of the $95 million second portion of the HRBT was funded as part of the Interstate Highway System as authorized under the Federal-Aid Highway Act of 1956, as a portion of I-64, which means that it was funded with 90% FHWA funds from the Highway Trust Fund and 10% state DOT funds. The second span opened on November 1, 1976 as a toll-free roadway.
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