CAPE CHARLES, Va. – Repairs to the Chesapeake Bay Bridge-Tunnel are underway after Monday’s incident that caused a major shutdown.
Construction is expected to take approximately three weeks.
Officials say the concrete ceiling between the roadway and the upper air plenum are in need of repair, which will require the demolition of damaged concrete and placement of new concrete and tile. Several tiles also need to be replaced; these are mostly limited to the tunnel portal and the area where the piece of equipment came to rest against the tunnel wall. Some light fixtures will also be replaced after being damaged.
Repair work will be done between 9 p.m. and 6 a.m. with a single lane closure. Like other tunnel maintenance work, traffic will be diverted around the work area.
Work is anticipated to be completed by the end of October.
The incident is still under investigation, and corrective actions against the Chesapeake Tunnel Joint Venture (CTJV) will be identified once the investigation is complete.
CTJV is the company that is constructing the new parallel tunnel at Thimble Shoal Channel. One of its tractor-trailers that was hauling a piece of heavy equipment from One Island to Two Island struck the ceiling of the Thimble Tunnel, causing the equipment to fall into the road. No one was hurt in the incident.
The height of the company’s truck was not checked by the usual system because it did not have to travel through the toll lanes. On Monday, CBBT officials said the driver of the tractor-trailer will be charged with going over the tunnel’s height limits.
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