THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Tuesday, May 30, 1995 TAG: 9505270004
SECTION: FRONT PAGE: A10 EDITION: FINAL
TYPE: Editorial
LENGTH: Short : 32 lines
The Virginia Beach-Norfolk Expressway is going to seem weird, beginning Thursday, with no toll charged.
The big question remains, Will the expressway turn deadly?
As staff writer Mac Daniel reported, in the first nine months after toll booths were eliminated on I-95 in Richmond, more than 640 drivers wrecked on that stretch of highway - a 44 percent increase from before. Without the booths, which spaced out cars, traffic clogged at popular exits, often backing traffic up on the interstate. Nine months after the booths' removal, Master Trooper Bud English told the Richmond Times-Dispatch, ``People are topping hills and running around corners at 55, and traffic is stopped.''
Hills and curves are not a problem on the expressway. Still, once the tolls are removed, traffic will move, or not move, differently than before.
And there could be more traffic, as drivers who once took alternate routes to avoid the toll move to the expressway.
The speed limit in the toll-plaza area will be 40 mph. Troopers will be stationed there around the clock to discourage speeding.
Above all else, Thursday, expect traffic to be different, and keep in mind that roads become doubly dangerous when traffic patterns are unfamiliar. by CNB