$141M granted for Hampton Roads I-64 improvements
HAMPTON ROADS, Va. (WAVY) — A $141 million loan will go toward the Interstate 64 Express Lanes project in Hampton Roads, the federal government recently announced.
The U.S. Department of Transportation’s Build America Bureau provided the low-interest loan to the Hampton Roads Transportation Accountability Commission on behalf of the Virginia Department of Transportation to improve drivers’ safety and their ability to get around the region easier, it said.
The first phase of the project began last month in Norfolk with a segment of the express lanes being worked on there. VDOT has referred to this construction phase as “Norfolk Segment 1A,” which it said would help relieve congestion at key locations along I-64 for about two miles from Tidewater Drive (exit 277) to Patrol Road.
It’s part of a $197.6 million design-build contract.
Contractor Allan Myers will convert the existing shoulder to a part-time shoulder Express Lane, which will run alongside the three existing general purpose lanes in each direction. This project also includes the widening and rehabilitation of five bridges, as well as the rehabilitation of three additional bridges within the project corridor.
When finished, the part-time shoulder Express Lane will operate in the opposite direction of the Reversible Roadway Express Lanes, with westbound I-64 traffic in the mornings using the Reversible Roadway Express Lanes, while eastbound traffic will use the part-time shoulder Express Lane. In the afternoons, the directional usage will reverse.
First phase of I-64 Express Lanes project in Norfolk set to begin
“This project will eliminate a key regional supply chain bottleneck and has vast economic and job creation potential by providing a consistently reliable connection to Virginia’s port system, the third largest on the East Coast,” said DOT Deputy Secretary Polly Trottenberg in a release. “Additionally, the project will enhance safety by improving the emergency evacuation route for the region.”
The funding is set to help I-64 improvements, which will add one full-time express lane, one part-time express lane and two general purpose lanes in each direction.
VDOT expects to complete the project in late 2026. Additional improvements include building noise walls, replacing eastbound Hampton River bridges, and rehabilitating four bridges at Hampton River, King Street and Settlers Landing Road.
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