Massive traffic jam draws attention to overdue repairs

RICHMOND

At three of the four publicly funded tunnels in Hampton Roads, state transportation officials have yet to complete the planned installation of pumps that work even if submerged in water.

Those pumps aren't used everywhere, but experts say they can be found in many of the nation's tunnel systems.

Malfunctioning equipment, including a flooded pump house, has been mentioned by state officials as a potential cause of water that seeped into the Hampton Roads Bridge-Tunnel on July 2.

That flooding resulted in a daylong traffic jam across the region and exposed the state to renewed criticism about the shortcomings of water crossings in the region.

After the Midtown flooded during Hurricane Isabel, Virginia officials pledged to spend millions on maintenance improvements at the tunnels. They said in 2004 that the work would be completed by fiscal 2009.

That fiscal year ended last month without all the work being done.

"Our system is so fragile that unless everything operates perfectly, we have a problem... and we can't evacuate our region in a weather disaster," said Del. Glenn Oder, a Newport News Republican who has pushed legislation to compel the state to advance bridge-tunnel expansion.

State transportation officials plan to hold a public meeting this morning in Chesapeake to provide an update about the investigation of the July 2 problems at the HRBT.

They have not said whether the water-resistant pumps would have prevented the flooding that caused last week's backups.

The pump replacement work is related to other repairs and safety improvements being made at the HRBT, the Downtown and Midtown tunnels, and the Monitor-Merrimac Memorial Bridge-Tunnel.

The Chesapeake Bay Bridge-Tunnel is privately operated.

Officials say new submersible pumps are in place at the Monitor-Merrimac. Records show that last year, the state awarded contracts for new pumps at the Downtown and Midtown tunnels.

The submersible pumps aren't universal. They are not used at Baltimore's two tunnels, the Baltimore Harbor Tunnel and the Fort McHenry Tunnel.

There have been no issues with the nonsubmersible pumps, Maryland Transportation Authority spokeswoman Cheryl Sparks said, and there are no plans to replace them. Those pumps have been maintained and sometimes rebuilt over the lives of the tunnels, she added.

The pumping and water main systems at the Detroit-Windsor Tunnel connecting Michigan and Ontario have been overhauled in phases over the past 10 years, said its president, Neal Belitsky. The systems are original to the nearly 80-year-old tunnel.

Whether faulty equipment, state financial limitations or other reasons are to blame for last week's tunnel tangle, the saga is a vivid reminder of Virginia's transportation woes.

The issue is certain to be among the central themes of this year's gubernatorial contest, as it has been in the state legislature for much of this decade.

It is an intractable political feud that most agree needs a compromise funding solution - a fix that remains elusive.

Dwight Farmer, executive director of the Hampton Roads Transportation Planning Organization, has long advocated that the state depoliticize the funding of maintenance for roads, bridges and tunnels.

"The General Assembly should not extend its political capital to fill a pothole, or paint a sign or repair a pump that's beyond its useful service life," Farmer said.

"We should not debate, once a road is built, whether you will properly maintain it," he said.

Meanwhile, the transportation planning group is putting together a video looking at the impacts of the July 2 tunnel closing that will be used in its public outreach program.

"I think that we need to have a non-accusatory video piece that evokes emotion and gives anyone who views it a true appreciation for what the experience was like or would be if they were in it, Farmer said.

"Sooner or later, a Category 1, 2 or 3 hurricane will come back to Hampton Roads, and this is what we're going to be faced with during evacuations."

Pilot writer Meghan Hoyer contributed to this report.

Julian Walker, (804) 697-1564, julian.walker@pilotonline.com

Debbie Messina, (757) 446-2588, debbie.messina@pilotonline.com