NORFOLK, Va. - When you drive over the HRBT, you can see the progress being made on the expansion, but on Thursday News 3 got a different perspective from a boat.
The boat tour started at the southern end of the project. A new taller 8-lane bridge is being built to connect the tunnels to Norfolk.
The one-and-a-quarter mile span is being built higher than the existing bridges to try and mitigate the impacts of sea level rise. It will have a curve, so the traffic can smoothly connect with the roadway in Norfolk.
The existing bridges will eventually be demolished.
"A lot of progress has been made in the last year," said Rob Gianna, Project Manager of Marine Bridges for Hampton Roads Connector Partners.
Gianna says the work remains on schedule. "There's been some challenges along the way with materials and some supply chain issues that I think everyone is dealing with in these unprecedented times, but we've been pushing forward," he said.
At the southern island of the project, the pieces that will one day form the underwater tunnel will be delivered. A boring machine will put the concrete segments into place and pump out soil and water. That work is expected to begin next spring.
The water and soil will be tested to make sure they're clean. If the water is clean, it can be pumped back into the channel. The soil will be put on a barge and taken to a to-be-determined location.
"It's a difficult project. A lot of it is because there are some environmental challenges because of where we're working here, this close to the coast and the Chesapeake Bay," said Gianna.
In May, News 3 got a look at how the segments of the tunnels are being constructed.
On the north side of the project, two four-lane bridges will replace the existing bridges in the roughly three-quarters of a mile stretch. Eastbound traffic is expected to shift onto a new bridge next spring with additional shifts happening in the future.
"This is an interstate highway that we're maintaining two lanes of traffic at all times in each direction that does require a lot of phasing work to take place. We will be doing a lot of traffic shifts throughout the life of the project," said Gianna.
The nearly $4 billion project is expected to be completed in November 2025, meaning you'll see the work continuing in the area for years to come.
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