Title of Regulation: 24VAC30-61. Rules and Regulations Governing the Transportation of Hazardous Materials Through Bridge-Tunnel Facilities (amending 24VAC30-61-20, 24VAC30-61-30, 24VAC30-61-40).

Statutory Authority: §§ 33.1-12 and 33.1-49 of the Code of Virginia.

Effective Date: October 12, 2011.

Agency Contact: Perry Cogburn, Director, Emergency Operations Center, Department of Transportation, 1221 East Broad St., Richmond, VA 23219, telephone (804) 786-2848, or email perry.cogburn@vdot.virginia.gov.

Summary:

The amendments (i) eliminate listed phone numbers and add an agency website address where contact information is available, (ii) correct a reference to "I-64" in table of facilities to "I-664," and (iii) revise the table in 24VAC30-61-40 to reflect content of information currently used at VDOT facilities covered by the regulation.

24VAC30-61-20. List of state-owned bridge-tunnel facilities in the Commonwealth.

The following table lists the six state-owned bridge-tunnel facilities in the Commonwealth. The Virginia Department of Transportation owns and operates all six facilities listed. A list of telephone numbers for each facility is available at the following website: http://www.virginiadot.org/info/hazmat.asp.

For purposes of this chapter, the facilities listed above are classified into two groups: rural and essentially distanced from bodies of water, and urban and essentially proximate to bodies of water.

24VAC30-61-30. Restrictions on hazardous material transportation across rural and distanced-from-water facilities.

The two rural and distanced-from-water tunnel facilities are: the Big Walker Mountain Tunnel and the East River Mountain Tunnel. For these two tunnels, and these two only, no restrictions apply on the transport of hazardous materials, so long as transporters and shippers are in compliance with 49 CFR 100 through 180, and any present and future state regulations which may become in force to implement the federal regulations. In addition, the Commonwealth Transportation Commissioner may, at any time, impose emergency or temporary restrictions on the transport of hazardous materials through these facilities, so long as sufficient advanced signage is positioned to allow for a reasonable detour.

Questions on this section of the regulation should be directed to the VDOT Emergency Operations Center at the following telephone number: (804) 371-0891, contact information for which is available from the following website: http://www.virginiadot.org/info/hazmat.asp. Copies of the regulation will be provided free of charge. For copies, please write to:

Virginia Department of Transportation
ATTN: Emergency Operations Center
1221 East Broad Street
Richmond, Virginia 23219

24VAC30-61-40. Restrictions on hazardous material transportation across urban and water-proximate facilities.

Hazardous materials are regulated in the four urban and water-proximate tunnels (Elizabeth River (Midtown and Downtown), Hampton Roads, and Monitor-Merrimac) based exclusively on the "hazard class" of the material being conveyed. The following tables list those categories of materials grouped under the designations "Prohibited," "No Restrictions," or "Restricted."

** Please contact the Chesapeake Bay Bridge Tunnel at 757-331-2960 for information on their regulation. Regulations concerning the transportation of hazardous materials across the Chesapeake Bay Bridge Tunnel (CBBT) are available from the CBBT website: http://www.cbbt.com/hazmat.html.