Transportation in Virginia

Transportation in the Commonwealth of Virginia is by land, sea and air.

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History

Colonial period, 19th century

During the colonial period, the

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By the 19th century, the

.

20th-21st centuries

With urging from the state chapter founded in Roanoke in 1894 of the National Good Roads Movement, in 1906 the Virginia General Assembly created the first State Highway Commission. In 1932, the state's role was expanded when the provisions of the Byrd Road Act during the Great Depression brought most secondary roads in the counties into the scope of state control and maintenance.

In the mid-20th century, Virginia's

was built to relieve heavy traffic on US1-301 between those two cities.

In 1957, The

are some of the busiest roads of commerce on the East Coast.

Of course, people and property continue to travel by

.

The

facilities.

For those who wish to live in the past, at least for a visit, the

distributes a free map showing them.

Highways and bridges

The

and then reaches the West Virginia state line.

Interstate highways

Virginia has an extensive network of

. These Interstate Highways are as follows:

• Major east-west routes (from south) are:
  • I-74 (planned, not yet built)
  • I-64
  • I-66
• Major north-south routes (from west) are:
  • I-73 (planned, not yet built))
  • I-77
  • I-81
  • I-85
  • I-95

• Three-digit Interstates are:
  • I-264
  • I-195
  • I-295
  • I-395
  • I-464
  • I-495
  • I-564
  • I-581
  • I-664
  • I-785 (partially built, but currently incomplete and not signed)
  • Another planned route,
    State Route 895 and operated as toll road
    under a public-private financing partnership.

Primary highways

Primary highways, totaling 8,111 miles (13,053 km),

Primary routes are generally given numbers under 600. The two exceptions -

Interstate Highway

spurs.

Major U.S. highways in Virginia include:

Secondary highways

Virginia has 48,305 miles (77,739 km) of secondary routes.^[2] These roads, numbered 600 and up, receive less funding than primary routes. Numbers are only unique within each county, though routes that cross county lines generally keep their numbers.

Under the provisions of the Byrd Road Act of 1932, the secondary roads in most of Virginia's counties are maintained by the Virginia Department of Transportation, an arrangement that a 1998 study found " unusual among the 50 states." (The study also identified such issues as drainage, speed limits, and planning and coordination of roads with development as those local leaders felt should be within their control).^[4]

The streets and roads in two counties, Arlington and Henrico, as well as some of the incorporated towns, and all of the independent cities are maintained by the various localities. In the early 21st century, the Virginia General Assembly was considering legislation to allow some additional counties (most likely those in fast-growing areas) to choose to resume control and care for the secondary highways within their boundaries.

National parkways

Several national parkways are located in Virginia. These include:

• Blue Ridge Parkway
• Colonial Parkway
• George Washington Memorial Parkway
• Skyline Drive

Beltways and bypasses

Northern Virginia

The

. The road is signed with Inner Loop and Outer Loop designations.

Hampton Roads

The

between Newport News and Suffolk. The Beltway connects with another Interstate highway and three arterial U.S. Highways at Bower's Hill near the northeastern edge of the Great Dismal Swamp. The road is signed with Inner Loop and Outer Loop designations.

Also in Hampton Roads, the Williamsburg area has State Route 199, a semi-circular limited access roadway also named the Humelsine Parkway, which is sometimes locally referred to as the "Williamsburg Beltway."

Richmond

The Richmond area does not officially have a beltway. However, it has two roads that effectively form portions of a beltway, though they do not completely encircle Richmond. These are Interstate 295 in the northwest, northern, and eastern portions, and State Route 288 in the southwest and western areas.

Staunton

Staunton, Virginia's

is a freeway-style 5-10 mile beltway highway making a complete circle around the city, except for about 5 miles (8.0 km) where it merges on with Interstate 81. The road is currently a 2 lane road, except for some areas to the far east and far west. In the future, the road will be expanded into a full 4 lane road.

Bypasses

Many urban areas in Virginia have roads that bypass the central portions. In some cases, semi-circumferential roadways exist, such as State Route 37 in the Winchester area, and State Route 199 in the Williamsburg and Historic Triangle area.

River and waterway crossings

Major bridges, tunnels, and bridge-tunnels

In the Hampton Roads area, there are three bridge-tunnel complexes known as the

Virginia has many crossings of its rivers and waterways. Listed alphabetically, some of the larger named crossings include:

• 14th Street Bridge (I-395)
  (across Potomac River)
• American Legion Memorial Bridge on I-495 across Potomac River
• Arland D. Williams Jr. Memorial Bridge
  (part of the 14th St bridge complex, across Potomac River)
• Berkley Bridge on I-264 at Elizabeth River, Norfolk
• Boulevard Bridge in Richmond
• Downtown Tunnel joining Portsmouth and Norfolk
• Edward E. Willey Bridge (across James River)
• George P. Coleman Memorial Bridge (across York River)
• Governor Harry W. Nice Memorial Bridge (mostly in Maryland)
• Hampton Roads Bridge–Tunnel (across mouth of Hampton Roads joining cities of Hampton and Norfolk)
• James River Bridge (across James River)
• Martin Luther King Jr. Memorial Bridge joining cities of Petersburg and Colonial Heights
• Midtown Tunnel (joining Portsmouth and Norfolk)
• Monitor–Merrimac Memorial Bridge–Tunnel (across Hampton Roads between cities of Newport News and Suffolk)
• Pocahontas Parkway Bridge
  (across James River)
• Powhite Parkway Bridge
  (across James River)
• Robert E. Lee Memorial Bridge (across James River)
• Theodore Roosevelt Bridge (mostly in DC) (across Potomac River)
• Varina-Enon Bridge (across James River)
• Woodrow Wilson Bridge (mostly in DC and Maryland)
• Wilson Creek Bridge (a.k.a. The Smart Road Bridge)
• World War II Veterans Memorial Bridge (across James River)

Ferry systems

Motor vehicle services

The

, it is the only 24-hour state-run ferry operation in Virginia and has over 90 employees. It operates four ferryboats, the Pocahontas, the Williamsburg, the Surry, and the Virginia. The facility is toll-free.

The VDOT operates other toll-free cable-guided ferries: the Merry Point ferry, which crosses the western end of the Corrotoman River in Lancaster County; the Sunnybank Ferry, crossing the Little Wicomico River in Northumberland County; and the Hatton Ferry, one of the last two poled ferries in the United States.

Pedestrian ferry services

Additionally, Hampton Roads Transit's Paddlewheel Ferry on the Elizabeth River operates service (no motor vehicles) between Portsmouth and Norfolk and boasts the world's first natural gas-powered pedestrian ferry.

Commuter bus service

Northern Virginia has several commuter bus operations. They include

• Fairfax Connector
• Loudoun County Commuter Bus
• QUICKS
• MARTZ
• OmniRide
• Shenandoah Valley Commuter Bus

Local public transportation

Transit bus and paratransit systems

Virginia has a number of publicly funded providers of transit bus and paratransit services. They include:

Subway systems

Subway service is available to residents of northern Virginia. The Washington Metro connects suburban communities to Washington, D.C., Dulles International Airport, and National Airport. Four lines operate in Virginia: the Silver Line, the Orange Line, the Blue Line, and the Yellow Line.

Light rail and streetcar projects

on August 19, 2011. A future extension to the Virginia Beach oceanfront was under consideration until it was voted down in a 2016 city referendum.

A study undertaken in 2010 examined the possibility of a rapid transit line along Broad Street in

BRT line opened in 2018.

Intercity bus services

Intercity bus service is provided by Greyhound Lines, Megabus, OurBus, and a few Chinatown bus lines. In 2017 the Virginia Department of Rail and Public Transportation started the Virginia Breeze, contracted to Megabus, and it now has three routes, from the North Carolina border to Washington, DC.^[6]

Railroads

Passenger rail

v t e Virginia passenger rail
Legend
Amtrak Virginia Railway Express Crystal City Alexandria Backlick Road Franconia–Springfield Rolling Road Lorton Burke Centre Lorton (Auto Train) Clifton events only Woodbridge Manassas Park Rippon Manassas Quantico Broad Run Brooke Culpeper Leeland Road Fredericksburg Charlottesville Spotsylvania Staunton Ashland Clifton Forge Richmond Staples Mill Road Cardinal to Chicago Lynchburg Main Street Roanoke Williamsburg Danville Newport News Crescent to New Orleans Petersburg Norfolk Palmetto to Savannah Carolinian to Charlotte Auto Train to Sanford Silver Service to Miami
Key Amtrak Manassas Line All services Fredericksburg Line All stations are accessible

Virginia is served by passenger rail service provided by Amtrak and Virginia Railway Express commuter rail. The Virginia Department of Rail and Public Transportation (DRPT) has projects underway for establishing high speed passenger rail service from Washington, D.C., to Hampton Roads and Raleigh, North Carolina, as part of the Southeast High Speed Rail Corridor (SEHSR). In addition, Virginia expands Amtrak service through grants to freight railroads to upgrade track, in exchange for more passenger carriage, and it purchases under-used or abandoned right-of-way from the railroads (rail-banking).^[7] North Carolina also does this, as well as supporting Amtrak lines directly and owning a railroad,^[8] and is in a rail compact with Virginia. Ridership levels tend to bear out the investment, which is incremental and focused on areas with high demand.^[9] The Amtrak Northeast Regional has been enhanced to Newport News and extended to a new Norfolk station. Another new station opened in Roanoke, and the Lynchburg station was rehabilitated to serve both the Crescent and the Northeast Regional. The busiest stations are in Richmond, Northern Virginia and Charlottesville.^[10] Lorton, Virginia, is the northern terminus for Amtrak's non-stop Auto Train, which allows passengers to take a motor vehicle on an overnight trip between there and Sanford, Florida, just outside of Orlando. The thrice-weekly Cardinal runs through Piedmont and Western Virginia to Chicago.

A Transdominion Express was proposed in the early 2000's to serve Southside Virginia.

Freight railroads

Virginia is served by major

company, has its headquarters in Norfolk.

Ports

Air and Space

Virginia is served by a number of major commercial airports.

Top Virginia airports by total passengers boarded

Airport	Metropolitan area	City	IATA airport code	CY 2008 Boarding[11]	National rank
Washington Dulles International Airport	Washington, DC	Dulles	IAD	11,348,775	21
Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport	Washington, DC	Arlington	DCA	8,704,466	28
Norfolk International Airport	Hampton Roads	Norfolk	ORF	1,786,594	69
Richmond International Airport	Richmond	Richmond	RIC	1,733,668	70
Newport News/Williamsburg International Airport	Hampton Roads	Newport News	PHF	504,292	116

Other important airports include:

• Charlottesville-Albemarle Airport
• Lynchburg Regional Airport
• Roanoke Regional Airport
• Shenandoah Valley Regional Airport
• Stafford Regional Airport

The state is also home to two spaceports:

• NASA Wallops Flight Facility
• Mid-Atlantic Regional Spaceport (MARS)

Nautical

Hampton Roads has become known as the "world's greatest natural harbor". The port is located only 18 miles (29 km) from open ocean on one of the world's deepest, natural ice-free harbors. Since 1989, Hampton Roads has been the mid-Atlantic leader in U.S. waterborne foreign commerce and is ranked second nationally behind the Port of South Louisiana based on export tonnage. When import and export tonnage are combined, the Port of Hampton Roads ranks as the third largest port in the country (following the ports of New Orleans/South Louisiana and Houston. In 1996, Hampton Roads was ranked ninth among major U.S. ports in vessel port calls with approximately 2,700. In addition, this port is the U.S. leader in coal exports. The coal loading facilities in the Port of Hampton Roads are able to load in excess of 65 million tons annually, giving the port the largest, most efficient and modern coal loading facilities in the world.

The Hampton Roads region's economic base is largely port-related, including shipbuilding, ship repair, naval installations, cargo transfer and storage, and manufacturing related to the processing of imports and exports. Associated with the ports' military role are almost 50,000 federal civilian employees.

The harbor of Hampton Roads is an important highway of commerce, especially for the cities of

now serves the former C&O facility at Newport News.

Virginia has extensive waterways. In addition to the lower portion of the Chesapeake Bay and the harbor of Hampton Roads, navigable rivers include:

• Elizabeth River
• James River
• York River
• Rappahannock River
• Potomac River

The Atlantic Intracoastal Waterway passes through eastern Virginia.

The state operates an inland port facility near Front Royal.

See also

• Environment of Virginia
• Southeast High Speed Rail Corridor
• Hatton Ferry
• Plug-in electric vehicles in Virginia

References

External links

• VDOT
• Virginia Department of Rail and Public Transportation
• Virginia Department of Motor Vehicles
• Amtrak
• Virginia Railway Express
• Greyhound and Carolina Trailways Buses
• Transdominion Express webpage
• VDOT Ferry Information
• Elizabeth River Ferry