The Virginia Department of Transportation announced Wednesday that Hampton Roads District Administrator Jim Utterback will lead the Hampton Roads Bridge-Tunnel expansion project.
“Jim Utterback has a proven record in successfully leading major construction projects for VDOT,” Commissioner Stephen Brich said in a news release. “His experience in transportation development and project management is invaluable to what will be one of the largest infrastructure projects in the nation.”
Utterback has led VDOT’s Hampton Roads District since 2013. In that time, he has overseen the development of construction projects exceeding $1.2 billion. He will transition into his new role in the upcoming months and VDOT will soon begin to look for a new Hampton Roads lead by conducting a nationwide search.
The expansion project, the largest in VDOT’s history, is comprised of the construction of another bridge-tunnel and the widening of Interstate 64 in both Hampton and Norfolk.
The expansion will bring express toll lanes to the region. Free lanes will remain available “to all motorists at all times,” a VDOT release said.
Two of the four lanes will be free lanes, while there will be one express toll lane. Another can be used as an express toll lane during “peak traffic,” according to VDOT spokesperson Paula Miller.
VDOT will award a contract to a construction company in spring 2019, with construction slated to start in mid-2019.
The project is expected to be finished by 2024.
