THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Wednesday, September 27, 1995 TAG: 9509270420
SECTION: FRONT PAGE: A1 EDITION: FINAL
SOURCE: By MAC DANIEL, STAFF WRITER
DATELINE: NORFOLK LENGTH: Medium: 93 lines
High-occupancy vehicle lanes, those freeways beloved by ridesharers and reviled by lone drivers, will soon be heading to downtown Norfolk.
The 3.3 miles of new HOV lanes will cost $36 million, and were approved last week by the Commonwealth Transportation Board.
The lanes, running on Interstate 264 from the Brambleton Avenue exit to the Military Highway interchange, will be constructed in the road's grassy median and will be the first HOV lanes on that stretch of highway.
Construction could begin in November and will take about three years. In that time, commuters will have to negotiate lane closures and other construction delays.
But when the work is finished in Oct. 1998, Norfolk-bound commuters will be able to travel without leaving HOV lanes from the Mount Trashmore area of Virginia Beach on Route 44 to the Brambleton Ave. interchange on I-264.
It won't be as seamless on the way back, however.
Ridesharing commuters will have to negotiate a 2,000-foot bottleneck of regular traffic at the point where Interstate 64, I-264 and Route 44 converge. The existing cloverleaf prevents construction of HOV lanes connecting the three.
The state is studying whether it needs to build an expensive flyover to bridge the gap.
Once the HOV work is complete, opposing lanes of traffic will be divided by concrete barriers similar to those on Route 44. Lanes along Interstate 264 will be reduced from 12 feet wide to 11 feet wide to accommodate the new lanes.
In addition, the project will include roadway improvements and about $7 million in sound walls.
Tidewater Construction Corp. of Norfolk and Kiewit Construction Company of Baltimore were awarded the state contract.
The new lanes will be HOV-2 lanes, which permit only vehicles carrying two or more passengers during peak travel times. They will be similar to the diamond HOV-2 lanes on Route 44.
The new HOV lanes are expected to move traffic more quickly and safely, cutting the number of vehicles on the road and reducing the amount of local air pollution.
``Unfortunately,'' said Frank Dunn, a transportation planner for VDOT, ``HOV lanes are designed not to relieve the conventional lanes. If the HOV is free and moving while the rest of traffic is snarled, then it's working well.''
The new HOV lanes are predicted to carry 4,400 vehicles per day by 2010, according to VDOT figures.
In 1993, the last year for which the state has figures, Interstate 264 between Brambleton Avenue and Merrimac Avenue carried 118,000 vehicles per day. That section of road is predicted to have 166,000 vehicles per day by 2010.
Traffic frequently backs up on westbound Interstate 264 during morning rush hour, especially near the Interstate 64 and 264 interchange. If more people carpool and use the new HOV lanes, say local transportation officials, that congestion could be eased.
The contractor is required to keep three lanes of traffic open in peak directions while the road is under construction.
A separate construction contract will put the finishing touches on the project by rebuilding the Military Highway bridge over I-264 and connecting the westbound HOV lanes from I-264 with those on Route 44.
Although now accepted, HOV lanes got off to a rocky start in South Hampton Roads.
The region's first HOV lanes were opened in September 1986 along Route 44. But two years later, state legislators wiped them out, saying the lanes cost too much money and were little used.
The lanes re-emerged on Route 44 and Interstate 64 in 1992, having been reduced from HOV-3 lanes, which require three or more passengers, to HOV-2 lanes.
``It's been very successful since 1992,'' said Dunn, adding that the new HOV-2 lanes exceeded state predictions in their second week of use.
A route to the heart of downtown Norfolk could be the next step for HOVs. Private consultants are conducting a state study to see if HOV lanes could be brought as far into the city as the City Hall Avenue exit. ILLUSTRATION: Color photo
CHRISTOPHER REDDICK/Staff
Interstate 264 looking east from the Norfolk State walkover: Once
the lanes are completed, HOV motorists will be able to travel from
the Mount Trashmore area on Route 44 to the Brambleton Avenue
interchange on I-264. Motorists heading eastward will run into a
bottleneck where I-264 and Route 44 converge with I-64.
Map
STAFF
by CNB