The Hampton Roads Bridge Tunnel-- Mid-Century promise turns into 21st century traffic jam...

To fully understand the history of the Hampton Roads Bridge Tunnel (HRBT), one has to understand how people traveled from Norfolk to the peninsula (and vice-versa) prior to its construction.

At some point in the 19th century till 1959, a ferry service took people from the end of Hampton Blvd. in Norfolk (near the Navel Base) to what is now a small boat harbor near the Monitor Merrimack Memorial Bridge-Tunnel in Downtown Newport News.  There was also a secondary service that carried less passengers that ran between Willoughby Spit to Hampton (where the HRBT is now).   You can see a couple of vintage postcards on the ferry here.  The ferry ride took half an hour each way, and by the end of the ferry's run cost $1.25 per vehicle, plus an additional $.20 for each passenger.  While this worked, there had to be a faster way. 

That faster way came with the signing of the Federal-Aid Highway Act of 1956, which created the Interstate Highway System.  While a lot of people worked to create this bill, most of the credit historically goes to then-President Dwight D. Eisenhower.  In 1919, Eisenhower was a participant in the first Transcontinental Motor Convoy.  The poor condition of the country's roads became apparent at that point in time and made a big impression on young Eisenhower.  While improvements were made because of the motor convoys, there was more room for growth.  Fast forward to World War II, then-General Eisenhower, found that the idea of Germany's autobahn, an interstate like system of roads, was an effective way of traveling quick and easily through the country.  He is quoted as saying, "The old convoy had started me thinking about good, two-lane highways, but Germany had made me see the wisdom of broader ribbons across the land." The signing of this bill was the beginning of I-64 and the Hampton Roads Bridge Tunnel.

The HRBT was one of the first sections of the Interstate Highway System to be completed.  It opened on November 1, 1957.  The original section (now the westbound tube), like the ferry, had a $1.25 toll until June 3, 1976 when the eastbound tube opened and the toll was discontinued.  It shortened the commute from Norfolk to Hampton by as much as 25 minutes, and was a miracle of the modern age to those who had to use it on a regular basis.

The problem is that the traffic has exploded over the years.  From 5,500 vehicles a day in 1957 to over 100,000 vehicles a day in the 2011 tourist season.  This has led to congestion, and unless you are traveling at 3AM, a seemingly permanent traffic jam.  While there are plans in the works for a new span, connecting the HRBT to I-664's Monitor-Merrimack Memorial Bridge-Tunnel, we are currently at a stand still.  It is this bloggers hope that we can come to some solution that helps this congestion soon and gives the travelers of the HRBT the promise of a better tomorrow.

Sources:
Wikipedia
Roads to the Future