THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1996, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Friday, June 21, 1996 TAG: 9606210494
SECTION: LOCAL PAGE: B1 EDITION: FINAL
SOURCE: BY DEBBIE MESSINA, STAFF WRITER
LENGTH: 76 lines
A plan to renumber the interstates in Hampton Roads is so politically charged that the Commonwealth Transportation Board on Thursday tabled the proposal, indefinitely.
The board had four options. But none was acceptable to all South Hampton Roads cities.
Norfolk is afraid of getting bypassed. Virginia Beach and Chesapeake want a continuous loop from the Peninsula to the beaches. The state wants the fewest changes at the lowest cost.
So the board agreed to put off the decision and work with the cities on the proposal.
The renumbering is an element in creating the Hampton Roads Beltway, which the transportation board unanimously approved in April. About 55 miles of Interstates 64 and 664 are included in the loop.
Even if the board makes no changes to the interstate numbers, the Beltway designation will still be implemented.
``We want everyone to come out ahead, and we don't want any losers,'' said William W. Prettyman, the transportation board member who represents South Hampton Roads.
But John L. Butner, traffic engineer for the Virginia Department of Transportation, warned: ``This problem is not going away. There's a good chance there will never be consensus on this.''
Until a solution is found, transportation officials will start using electronic signs along the interstates to achieve the intended goal of diverting traffic away from the strained Hampton Roads Bridge-Tunnel to the Monitor-Merrimac Memorial Bridge-Tunnel.
``If tourists get tired of sitting at the tunnel and decide to go somewhere else, who's the loser then?'' asked Chesapeake City Councilman W. Joe Newman. ``The whole region.''
A consultant offered four choices for renumbering Interstates 64 and 664, and Route 44, to encourage motorists heading to the Oceanfront or to the Outer Banks to bypass the chronically congested Hampton Roads Bridge-Tunnel.
The renaming also attempts to eliminate confusion on the interstate system. In some spots, motorists must take exits marked west in order to go east, and vice versa.
The consultant recommended a single road name from the Peninsula, through the Monitor-Merrimac tunnel and all the way to the Virginia Beach Oceanfront.
Under that option, Interstate 664 on the Peninsula would be renamed Interstate 64 and would link up with the current Interstate 64 after crossing the Monitor-Merrimac bridge-tunnel. Route 44 out to the Oceanfront also would be renamed Interstate 64. The current Interstate 64 through Norfolk would be renamed Interstate 864.
The drive, though 17 miles longer, would also take about the same time during peak travel periods because it would avoid tunnel gridlock.
Both Virginia Beach and Chesapeake prefer that plan.
But Norfolk fears it would put Norfolk on a ``sidetrack'' or ``secondary route.''
So Norfolk prefers another option, as does the Metropolitan Planning Organization, a transportation committee of the Hampton Roads Planning District Commission.
Norfolk's choice would designate the Monitor-Merrimac route all the way out to the Oceanfront as Interstate 664 while retaining Interstate 64 name in Norfolk through the current Interstate 264/Route 44 interchange.
VDOT's staff supports yet another option, one similar to Norfolk's preferred plan but that designates Route 44 as Interstate 64 instead of Interstate 664.
The cost of the options range from $700,000 to $850,000.
Whatever way is chosen, Virginia Beach stands to gain an interstate. Now, only two miles of Interstate 64 passes through the city.
``We are the largest city in the state, and we're not an interstate destination,'' said Robert Matthias, assistant to the city manager.
If the city gets Route 44 renamed as an interstate, Virginia Beach's name can finally be added to interstate highway directional signs. Plus, the city could be eligible for additional federal road funds. ILLUSTRATION: Graphic
[For a copy of the graphic, see microfilm for this date.] by CNB