NORFOLK, VA – The Virginia Department of Transportation (VDOT) with funding support from the Hampton Roads Transportation Accountability Commission (HRTAC) and construction joint venture Hampton Roads Connector Partners (HRCP), the design-build contractor, are currently constructing the Hampton Roads Bridge-Tunnel (HRBT) Expansion project, the largest highway construction project in the history of Virginia. HRCP is a consortium that includes Dragados USA, VINCI Construction Grand Projects, Flatiron Constructors, and Dodin Campenon Bernard. Under the Project’s funding plan, HRTAC provides approximately 92% of the $3.9 billion for this much needed and highly anticipated congestion relief project.

“VDOT, in partnership with HRCP, is determined to deliver a world-class infrastructure project for the Hampton Roads region as efficiently and safely as possible,” said Christopher Hall, VDOT’s Hampton Roads District Engineer. “A tremendous amount of work has been accomplished to date. HRCP has achieved a multitude of unprecedented milestones to include constructing the 15-acre expansion of the North Island, reassembling the second largest tunnel boring machine in North America, completing the largest continuous concrete pour in VDOT history, and boring and building nearly 90% of the first of the two new tunnels.”

In the spring of 2022, HRCP submitted documentation to VDOT stating that it had suffered unforeseen cost and schedule impacts since signing the contract in 2019. VDOT, in consultation with HRTAC, began a lengthy series of meetings with HRCP to better understand the merits, implications, and magnitude of the alleged impacts.

In the summer of 2023, HRCP submitted a formal “Request for Equitable Adjustment” seeking changes to the contract terms due to the alleged unforeseen circumstances. In total, HRCP requested more than 600 calendar days extension and $996 million in relief from VDOT. This request, if granted, would require significant additional funding and potentially put at risk VDOT’s ability to deliver other projects in the region on schedule, specifically the Hampton Roads Express Lanes Network (HRELN) which requires the completion of the HRBT Expansion Project.

Following additional coordination with HRTAC and the Commonwealth Transportation Board (CTB), along with USDOT Build America Bureau approval, it was determined that it was in the best interest of the HRBT Expansion Project and the Commonwealth to revise the original Comprehensive Agreement executed in 2019. 

The changes to the Comprehensive Agreement focus around four main topics.

1. Establish new Substantial Completion and Final Completion Deadlines. By establishing new contract dates, VDOT is able to place a higher level of confidence in the design-builder’s schedule, ensuring that the completion of the HRBT Expansion Project aligns with adjacent work needed to complete the HRELN.
2. Reset the Early Completion Incentive. The Early Completion Incentive provides motivation to the design-builder to complete the project ahead of schedule, allowing the roadway to be open to the public earlier than anticipated.
3. Provide Expanded Relief for Commodities. By expanding existing provisions of the Comprehensive Agreement, the design-builder will be eligible to receive additional compensation for the increased cost of certain materials associated with tunnel construction. For instance, if the design-builder bids the project including floodgate costs of $7 million but the price rises to $7.5 million at the time of purchase for the project, VDOT would pay for the increase of $500,000. Conversely, should the final cost fall below the bid cost, VDOT would be due a credit.
4. Provide Short-term Liquidity. Using funds previously allocated to the project, in partnership with HRTAC, VDOT is providing up to three months of working capital in advance of the work being complete. This measure includes a performance-based adjustment that rewards the design-builder for work performed ahead of schedule and penalizes them for falling behind. Funds are required to be used only for project eligible costs such as paying subcontractors, suppliers, and for long lead material items such as generators.

The revised date for the project’s substantial completion is Feb. 26, 2027, with a revised final completion date of Aug. 27, 2027, representing a change of 18 months from the original project schedule for substantial completion. In order to receive the full amount of the early completion incentive of $90 million, HRCP must achieve substantial completion not later than Sept. 25, 2026, which would be a delay of only 13 months compared to the project’s original schedule. Additional terms of the amended agreement include the resolution of outstanding disputes occurring before Aug. 1, 2023, based on contractual merit, valued at $9.9 million.

The modifications to the Comprehensive Agreement are intended to accomplish the following goals:

• Provide Construction Schedule Certainty
• Enhance Contractor Schedule Accountability 
• Reduce the Potential of Litigation

Project and executive leadership from VDOT and HRCP continue to meet regularly to review project progress, the health of the partnership and to reinforce the importance of on-time delivery. By working with HRCP and revising the Comprehensive Agreement, the project delivery team is able to keep the project nearly within the original budget of $3.9 billion.

About the Hampton Roads Bridge-Tunnel Expansion Project

The I-64 Hampton Roads Bridge-Tunnel in southeastern Virginia has long been one of the region’s most congested corridors. When complete, the $3.9 billion project will ease congestion on I-64, along a nearly 10-mile corridor through the addition of twin, two-lane bored tunnels and the widening of four-lane segments along I-64 from Settlers Landing Road in Hampton to Patrol Road in Norfolk. This bridge-tunnel is VDOT’s first bored tunnel and involves incredibly complex and innovative engineering.

To learn more about the details of the project, visit www.hrbtexpansion.org. 

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