12/20/02-A state study has sparked debate on whether tolls should be raised on the Chesapeake Bay Bridge-Tunnel.
The bridge-tunnel is a 17-mile link on U.S. 13 that runs from the Virginia Beach-Norfolk area to Virginia's Eastern Shore. Tolls for tractor-trailers can run as high as $36 per trip. The current toll for most cars is $10 each trip, with a discount for car drivers who make a round trip within 24 hours.
The Joint Legislative and Audit Review Commission, in a study released in November 2002, said the state would not have enough money to begin work on a parallel route before 2020 without increasing the round-trip toll. But the study also said current tolls would cover maintenance and operating costs through 2025.
Supporters of adding another bridge-tunnel - and the higher tolls to pay for it - say it is needed to accommodate increasing traffic. But some in state government say predictions of future traffic levels are exaggerated. Delegate Leo C. Wardrup, R-Virginia Beach, noted the bridge-tunnel's traffic is just reaching figures its builders expected by 1978.