VDOT holds tunnel review

RICHMOND, Va. - In response to the headaches caused by a July flooding incident at the Hampton Roads Bridge-Tunnel, the Virginia Department of Transportation has appointed an 11-member panel to review tunnel procedures.

The panel is scheduled to meet for the second time Tuesday morning on the campus of ODU.

The newly formed independent review panel got an overview of the July 2nd traffic nightmare during a Monday morning session which was open to the public.

The panel then left for nearly two hours to tour the Hampton Roads Bridge Tunnel itself. Security concerns did not allow the public to attend.

The panel is comprised of local and out-of-state transportation operations experts. The experts are seen as a different set of eyes looking at aproblem for possible solutions.

"We think their advice and expertise in traffic management and in organizational protocols that we use in tunnel management will add valuably to the good things our teams are already doing to manage this facility," VDOT Commissioner David Ekern told WAVY.com during the session.

According to a VDOT news release, the panel will review and provide recommendations to Ekern regarding existing existing policies and procedures relating to tunnel operations, technology and management.

Norfolk Mayor Paul Fraim thinks the panel is an excellent idea. He told WAVY.com, "There is a sense of urgency. It's the middle of hurricane season. We would very much like them to get on with their investigation and delivering a report."

VDOT is strapped for cash but Hampton Roads District Administrator Dennis Heuer says the agency has money set aside for this review panel.

"We're not paying their salary. They're all absorbing that in their parent organization. We're just paying for travel," said Heuer.

Heuer says most panel members will drive in. He also points out VDOT continues to upgrade and maintain systems at the HRBT.

A fire main break inside the West Interstate 64 tunnel caused flooding on July 2. This led to more than eight hours of massive traffic delays across Hampton Roads, as crews addressed the flooding and pumped water from the road. The tunnel itself was never breached or in danger due to the fire main break, VDOT said in a news release. Investigations have determined that the water main break was coincidental to weather events, but was not caused by a storm the night of July 1.

The panel is made up of the following members:
Chairman Philip J. Tarnoff, director, Center for Integrated Transportation Systems Management, University of Maryland
Steven Mondul, deputy assistant to the governor, commonwealth preparedness
Wallace Twigg, regional director, Virginia Department of Emergency Management
Lt. Ernest Poole Jr., Bureau of Field Operations, Division V, Virginia State Police
John M. Keifer, director, Department of Public Works, city of Norfolk
Lynn Allsbrook, traffic operations manager, city of Hampton
Steve Ernst, senior engineer for safety and security, Federal Highway Administration
Jeff Holland, executive director, Chesapeake Bay Bridge-Tunnel
Steve Napolitano, general manager, Port Authority Bus Terminal and Lincoln Tunnel, Port Authority of New York and New Jersey
Don Smith, tunnel maintenance operations manager, Maryland Transportation Authority
Connie Sorrell, chief of system operations, Virginia Department of Transportation