By Dale M. Stith
Transportation Planner

Transportation has a direct and personal effect on each and every resident of Hampton Roads.  Even if you do not drive, all the goods and services you depend on rely on the region’s roadway system.  The Long-Range Transportation Plan, or LRTP, is the document that identifies and plans for critically important transportation improvements that impact the region’s economic vitality and every citizen’s quality of life.  More importantly, regionally significant projects must be included in an adopted LRTP in order to advance towards construction.

The Hampton Roads Transportation Planning Organization (HRTPO), the  transportation planning agency for Hampton Roads, has completed the draft 2034 LRTP and is inviting the public to review and comment on this report.

The draft 2034 LRTP report documents the effort in developing the region’s transportation blueprint for the next twenty years.  LRTPs are updated every four years to reflect changing conditions such as new planning priorities, population projections, economic conditions, and anticipated travel demand.  These changing conditions can impact the regional transportation system; therefore future plans must consider alternatives to effectively address these needs.  Once alternatives are determined, funds are identified to pay for new or widened facilities.  This entire process requires regional cooperation and public participation.

To review and comment on the draft 2034 LRTP, please click the following link:

Draft 2034 Long-Range Transportation Plan

The draft 2034 LRTP Technical Appendices and draft 2034 LRTP Public Involvement Appendix can be accessed by clicking on the following links:

Draft 2034 LRTP Technical Appendices

Draft 2034 LRTP Public Involvement Appendix

(Files are large, slower connections may have a long download time.)

All interested parties are encouraged to review and send comments to the HRTPO Staff, at lrtp@hrpdcva.gov or by mail to Ms. Pavithra Parthasarathi, 723 Woodlake Drive, Chesapeake, Virginia 23320.  The public review period for this report has been underway since November 8, 2011.  The deadline for comments on the draft 2034 LRTP report is December 8th, 2011.

By: Keith Nichols
Senior Transportation Engineer

With water being such a prominent part of the Hampton Roads landscape, bridges are a critical part of the regional transportation system.  There are over 1,200 bridges in Hampton Roads, ranging from small culverts to some of the longest bridges in the world. 

Of these 1,214 bridges in Hampton Roads, 77 are classified as structurally deficient.  Structurally deficient bridges are structures with elements that need to be monitored and/or repaired, and eventually need to be rehabilitated or replaced.  It should be noted, however, that structurally deficient bridges are not necessarily unsafe, and bridge inspectors will close or place weight limits on any bridge that is unsafe.

Examples of prominent structurally deficient bridges in Hampton Roads include the Gilmerton Bridge, Lesner Bridge, Denbigh Boulevard Bridge over I-64 in Newport News, Churchland Bridge, and a segment of the Hampton Roads Bridge-Tunnel.

In addition, another 271 bridges in Hampton Roads are classified as functionally obsolete.  Functionally obsolete bridges are structures that were built to standards that are no longer used today, and have narrow lanes, low vertical clearances, difficult approaches, or may occasionally be flooded.

VDOT has made improving bridges a priority, both in Hampton Roads and throughout the Commonwealth.  A total of 27 bridge projects in Hampton Roads are included in the current Six-Year Improvement Program, with a total of $339 million in allocations.  Many structurally deficient bridge projects are funded, including the Gilmerton Bridge, Lesner Bridge, and Denbigh Boulevard Bridge over I-64.

The Hampton Roads Transportation Planning Organization completed a thorough study of bridges in 2008.  This study is available at the HRTPO website at http://hrtpo.org/Documents/Reports/2008/RegionalBridgeStudyFinalReport.pdf.

Structurally Deficient and Functionally Obsolete Bridges in Hampton Roads

By Rob Case, Principal Transportation Engineer

In its first eight weeks with paying riders, the Tide has served approximately 5,000 trips per weekday.  Given that an analysis prepared for HRT prior to construction forecasted weekday ridership of 2,920 for the opening year and 7,130 for the year 2030, the early ridership is higher than expected.

Stephanie Shealey
Transportation Engineer

At the July TPO meeting, the HRTPO Board approved the US Route 460 Corridor Study: Isle of Wight County. While there has been a lot of publicity in the newspapers recently about the Public-Private Transportation Act (PPTA) proposals for constructing a new alignment of US Route 460, this study focused on the existing route. Isle of Wight County asked the HRTPO to analyze what the conditions would be on US Route 460 before the new alignment is constructed.
 
With the current plans for industrial development around Windsor, congestion may become a significant issue. The HRTPO recommended improvements to the US Route 258, Court Street/Church Street/Bank Street, and the Roberts Avenue intersections to relieve congestion on US Route 460, to be built as traffic volumes on the corridor increase to where congestion relief is necessary.

HRTPO staff also reviewed crash records for the entire corridor, finding a large number of crashes caused by vehicles stopping in the through lanes prior to making turns. A two-way left-turn lane was recommended for the entire length of the corridor outside of downtown Windsor to separate the two opposing directions of travel while also allowing left-turning vehicles a safe place to wait for traffic to clear. Throughout Windsor, HRTPO staff recommended improving access management by narrowing driveways and closing unnecessary driveways that are close to intersections.

By Dale Stith
Transportation Planner

On June 16, 2011, the HRTPO Board approved the 2034 Long-Range Transportation Plan (LRTP) final list of projects for air quality conformity analysis.
 
Air Quality Conformity is the link between air quality improvement and transportation planning.  Before the 2034 LRTP can be implemented, the HRTPO must first demonstrate that the projects within the LRTP are compliant with the Virginia Department of Environmental Quality’s State Implementation Plan (SIP), which is the state air quality plan. The SIP establishes regional pollutant thresholds for various sectors.  The LRTP must ensure that estimated motor vehicle emissions generated from the projects in the Plan will not exceed the emissions limits set in the SIP’s motor vehicle emissions budget.  In simpler terms, LRTPs must show that transportation projects within the Plan do not produce pollutants that exceed regional thresholds.  Otherwise, the transportation projects cannot be federally funded or approved.

The air quality conformity analysis for the 2034 LRTP is scheduled to begin in July with an Interagency Consultation Group (ICG) meeting to discuss and approve the models, methods and latest planning assumptions that will be used in the analysis process.  Draft results are expected in September for review and comment.  Final results are scheduled to be submitted to the Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) and the Federal Transit Administration (FTA) in October.  After federal review, FHWA and FTA will issue a joint Transportation Conformity Finding, targeted for December.  The Transportation Conformity Finding is federal endorsement that the transportation projects in the LRTP are compliant with the SIP.  Once this determination is made, the HRTPO can adopt the 2034 LRTP as the regional transportation plan.

To open a larger view of the 2034 LRTP Air Quality Conformity Schedule, 

AQ_LRTP Schedule_06.20.pdf (42.59 kb)

Learn more about the Transportation Conformity, Clean Air Act, Ozone, and Common Pollutants:

The Bridge to Cleaner Air: Transportation Conformity:  This brochure provides general background on the transportation conformity process, as well as a description of benefits of the conformity program.

Plain English Guide to Clean Air Act: This guide provides a brief introduction to the programs, philosophies, and policies in the Clean Air Act--especially those reflected in the latest major changes to the Act in 1990.

Ozone: Good Up High, Bad Nearby:  Ozone acts as a protective layer high above the earth, but it can be harmful to breathe. This publication provides basic information about ground-level and high-altitude ozone.

Common Pollutants:  The EPA sets standards for six common pollutants.  Find out information on sources of the pollutant, why the pollutant is of concern, health and environmental effects, and efforts underway to help reduce the pollutant.

By Benito O. Pérez
HRTPO Transportation Engineer

Have you considered or hesitated ditching your car for transit? Transit is a mode of travel that gets commuters to work without commuters doing the driving. Transit is a mode that is less harmful to the environment than the car, plus cheaper on the commuter's wallet. Conversely, commuters may question whether they will get to work or run their errands on-time because they are unsure how long it would take by transit from their home or workplace.

Now, there's an App for that!

Mapnificent, a Google Maps application created by a German developer, takes transit schedule data from regional transit agencies, and creates a transit shed. A transit shed is an estimated area of destinations that you can travel to by transit from a given starting point, within a travel period. Mapnificent has been developed for the Hampton Roads Transit (HRT) service area to estimate how far one can travel on transit by just dragging a map pin for the starting point. Additionally the user adjusts a scroll bar for a desired maximum travel time to highlight destinations accessible within the set travel time on transit.

Mapnificent paired with Walkscore have been noted to be useful tools in deciding where to live in relation to work.  By having more options to get to work, you have more control of your commute.
Next time you are contemplating whether you can run that errand or get to work by transit, check Mapnificent by clicking HERE, to reassure yourself that, yes you can catch transit and leave the car keys at home.

By Dale Stith
Transportation Planner

What is this Study?

The Rural Long Range Transportation Plan (RLRP) is part of a new initiative to create regional transportation plans in rural areas that complement those in Virginia’s metropolitan and small urban areas.  The RLRP looks at improvements that can be made in the near-term and in the future, as far as the year 2035, in order to assess the effects of population and employment growth upon the transportation system.

Each RLRP was developed as a blueprint, or vision plan, to address all of the needs of the transportation system, regardless of anticipated funding availability. This regional plan can then be used by local, regional, and state agencies to identify transportation funding priorities.  The RLRP document for this region has more details on all of the analyses and recommendations.

Draft 2035 Rural Long Range Transportation Plan

Executive Summary

What Do You Think?

We would like to hear your comments on the information in this report:  in particular, the proposed recommendations.

Please submit comments no later than May 20, 2011 to Dale M. Stith by email at dstith@hrpdcva.gov or by telephone at 757-420-8300.

Submit Comment Form online
Download Comment Form to submit later

By Benito O. Pérez
Transportation Engineer

On April 21, 2011, the HRTPO Board approved a revised list of regional projects and studies for inclusion in the 2034 Long-Range Transportation Plan (LRTP).  The revision included upgrading the US Route 460 project from a study to a construction project.

The HRTPO staff coordinated with localities in April 2011 to determine local projects of regional significance to add to the approved List of Projects and Studies for inclusion in the 2034 LRTP. These additional projects are funded either by local allocations of state and federal funds or local funding contributions.  With these locally funded projects and the approved List of Projects and Studies, the HRTPO staff has developed the Draft 2034 LRTP List of Projects for Air Quality Conformity Analysis.  This Draft Project Conformity List includes all regionally significant projects that must undergo air quality conformity analysis.

Before the HRTPO Board's final approval of the 2034 LRTP Draft List of Projects for Air Quality Conformity Analysis in June 2011, the HRTPO is reaching out to the public for a review of the Draft Project Conformity List and soliciting input via public meetings and submitted comments.

Three public meetings will be held across the Hampton Roads region to accommodate public opportunity to provide written and verbal comments.  The meetings will provide a brief overview of the process of developing the LRTP,an opportunity to review the Draft 2034 List of Projects for Air Quality Conformity, and final steps in the development and adoption of the 2034 LRTP before opening up for public commentary.  Meetings will be held from 5:00 pm to 7:00 pm in the following locations on the following dates:

• May 25, 2011 - Hampton Public Library, 4207 Victoria Blvd., Hampton, VA 23669
  • Accessible via HRT Routes 101 and 103
    
• June 23, 2011 - Regional Building, 723 Woodlake Dr., Chesapeake, VA 23320
  • Accessible via HRT Route 15
    
• June 30, 2011 - Williamsburg Regional Library, 515 Scotland St., Williamsburg, VA 23185
  • Accessible via HRT Route 121 or WATA Red Line

Additionally, you can visit the HRTPO website at www.hrtpo.org or the plan’s website at www.keephamptonroadsmoving.com to provide comments and stay informed.