THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Friday, October 13, 1995 TAG: 9510130527
SECTION: LOCAL PAGE: B5 EDITION: FINAL
SOURCE: BY MAC DANIEL, STAFF WRITER
DATELINE: CHESAPEAKE LENGTH: Medium: 70 lines
It is a road that has been both slow in coming and slow to travel.
But with the passing of another summer's gridlock, a critical hearing on plans for a new and improved South Battlefield Boulevard began Thursday with the hope that this long-promised route will soon become reality.
Not only will the public comments help determine where and how the road is built, but they also will help determine the future of development for a large segment of southern Chesapeake.
More than 100 people, mostly residents living along the road, attended the meeting within the first hour. Many more streamed into Great Bridge High School during the second hour.
Lucretia Powers and Erma Silvester came to the meeting together, peering at a large black-and-white aerial photograph of the proposed routes.
Both women worried their homes would be affected by one of the three road options. But when a friend pointed out that their homes were well away from any of the road configurations, they breathed a sigh of relief.
They want the new road, they said, but not if it will disrupt their lives.
``I'm just scared that it's not going to get done until the year 2000,'' said Perry Wilkins, a fellow neighbor. ``The traffic right now is ridiculous. It's absolutely terrible.''
Virginia Route 168, the main traffic pipeline to the Outer Banks of North Carolina, starts with six lanes at Interstate 64 and narrows to two lanes south of the Great Bridge Bypass to the North Carolina line.
At last count, the road was carrying three times its capacity. Traffic jams sometime grow so long that frustrated motorists throw parties by the side of the road as local residents remain trapped in their driveways.
The effort to improve Route 168 has been slow. Since 1988, the project has gone through a bureaucratic maze after concerns were raised about the environmental impact of widening the road or building a new one. The bottom line, however, is a lack of state and federal money.
Chesapeake and state officials have been working together to get the remaining funds. If they succeed, construction could begin in the year 2000 and be completed two years later.
There is some talk that tolls could be part of the improved Route 168, but nothing has been decided. However, the consensus among local residents at the meeting was that tolls should be instituted. The majority of summer traffic that clogs the road is from out of state, according to Chesapeake officials.
``You can't fight progress,'' said one man who did not want to give his name, ``but you can control it.''
Six original options for improving South Battlefield Boulevard have been narrowed to three:
Building a new four-lane divided highway that would run parallel to U.S. Route 168 from the Great Bridge Bypass to the North Carolina line. This is the option recommended by the Chesapeake city staff and tentatively approved by the City Council. It would cost an estimated $106 million, the most expensive of the three options, but is expected to solve most of the road's problems.
Widening the existing two- to four-lane roadway to four to eight lanes. There is no chance for tolls with this option, which could cost about $68 million. While this is the least expensive of the three options, it would also displace the most homes and businesses.
Combining the above two options - a new four-lane divided highway would run to Indian Creek Road. From there, a widened U.S. Route 168 would follow the existing roadway. The project would cost about $83 million.
While Virginia officials try to find money for the road, North Carolina has already begun improvements to its section of the highway. Construction is under way on a section of the road through Moyock to the Virginia state line, and work is expected to be complete late next year, according to Tommy Brite, resident engineer for state's Department of Transportation. by CNB