Hampton, VA Motorcycle Injury Lawyer Reports – Congestion and Wrecks a Concern on the Hampton Roads Bridge Tunnel

On Jan. 17, 2012, a vehicle fire on the Norfolk, VA side of the Hampton Roads Bridge-Tunnel (HRBT) caused a backup of more than five miles along the I-64 in Hampton; on Jan. 7 it was two crashes.

Whatever the cause congestion on the HRBT between Hampton and Norfolk, VA is a way of life for many commuters.

In the Jan. 7 incident two people were taken to Riverside Regional Medical Center in Newport News, VA after two separate accidents that occurred simultaneously on I- 64 East in the tunnel, the Daily Press reported.

In one accident, a pickup truck rear-ended a SUV; in the other; in a second a motorcyclist smashed into the back of an SUV, police said.

The driver of both the pickup and the motorcycle were charged with following too closely.

As leading Norfolk and Virginia Beach, VA based accident injury attorneys, we are concerned about the numerous accidents caused by stop start traffic on this congested crossing as well as others such as the Downtown and the Midtown tunnels.

This surely contributes to a highway fatality death rate in Hampton that hit double figures in 2010.

There were 2,794 crashes in Hampton in 2010 of which 1,419 resulted in injuries and 10 in deaths, according to the Virginia Department of Motor Vehicles (VDOT).

VDOT has a long-term plan to widen the Hampton Roads Bridge Tunnel from four to eight lanes. But while the plan may be decades away an environmental study has identified at least 11 historic properties that could be affected by the plan, the Daily Press reported.