Road & Bridge Safety
In Hampton Roads there is a traffic crash every 16 minutes, and in Newport News there were 4,258 crashes in 2006, up 4.5% over the past decade. The Department of Engineering identified several accident prone intersections throughout the city and has worked with the Virginia Department of Transportation to install traffic cameras at the intersection of Jefferson Avenue and Oyster Point Road and Jefferson Avenue and Mercury Boulevard. Accident prone intersections have also been included in the Newport News Intersection Improvement Program and VDOT’s Highway Safety Improvement Program.
In Newport News there are a total of eighty-three bridges, tunnels and culverts. According to the Hampton Roads Planning District Commission (HRPDC), 23 bridges are in need of repair and 22 bridges are functionally obsolete, meaning that they are built to geometric standards that no longer apply. These bridges are regularly repaired and upgrade through the City’s bridge inspection program. Three bridges in Newport News were deemed structurally deficient, the Washington Avenue Bridge over the shipyard, the Lake Maury Bridge on Warwick Boulevard and the Denbigh Blvd/I-64 overpass. The Denbigh Blvd/I-64 overpass is maintained by the state and is part of VDOT’s 6-year Improvement Plan. The City has applied for state and federal grants to upgrade the Lake Maury Bridge, as well as the Washington Avenue/Shipyard overpass.