Project Overview

For the past decade Hampton Roads Transit (HRT) has been engaged in planning efforts for a seamless, regional transit system to serve the Hampton Roads area.

In 2005, after detailed analysis and community participation, HRT in partnership with the City of Norfolk, identified a light rail segment from East Virginia Medical Center to Newtown Road. The initial line will serve as the starter line for the regional light rail system, now known as The Tide.

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Several goals for The Tide light rail system have been established:

Enhance the continued development and redevelopment of the City of Norfolk.
Improve the access, reliability, and linkage of the public transportation system.
Create transit corridors that link residential, educational, employment and other activity centers.
Contribute to the protection and preservation of the environment through a multimodal transportation system.

The Tide Route - Click to view larger image

Click image to view larger map

The Tide light rail will extend 7.4 miles on an east to west alignment from the East Virginia Medical Center through downtown Norfolk, continuing along the Norfolk Southern right-of-way, adjacent to I-264, to Newtown Road. Want to know what it will be like to ride The Tide? Click here to see a video simulation.

To get a more in depth overview of The Tide, Click Here
Courtesy of The Virginian-Pilot, Reprinted with permission of The Virginian-Pilot.

Eleven stations will be constructed along the route

Medical Center Station - The Medical Center Station will be located on the south side of Brambleton Avenue, just west of Colley Avenue. The Medical Center Station will be served by HRT bus route #23 along Colley Avenue, and bus route #2 along Olney Road. A new bus route 4A will connect Old Dominion University (ODU) with the Medical Center and downtown Norfolk.
York Street Station - The York Street Station will be located on York Street, between Dunmore Street and Yarmouth Street, adjacent to the existing YMCA. The York Street Station will be a walk-on station.
Monticello Avenue Station - The Monticello Avenue Station will be located in the center of Monticello Avenue between Charlotte Street and Freemason Street in front of the proposed Wachovia Center development. The Monticello Avenue Station will be a walk-on station.
Plume Street Station - The Plume Street Station is to be located on the site of the Kirn Memorial Library, between Bank and Atlantic Streets on the east and west, and between City Hall Avenue and Plume Street on the north and south. The Plume Street Station will be a walk on station.
Government Center Station -The Government Center Station will be located within the plaza between City Hall, the Circuit Courts, and the Civic Center. Passengers will make bus connections to the existing downtown bus routes near Main Street and St. Paul's Boulevard.
Harbor Park Station - The Harbor Park Station will be located at the east end of Harbor Park, just west of an access driveway for Harbor Park. Although there is no planned HRT connecting bus service to the Harbor Park Station, one bus bay has been included to accommodate special event shuttles. This site will include a park-and-ride lot consisting of 1,100 spaces.
Norfolk State University (NSU) Station - The NSU Station will be located on an elevated, one-car 24 foot wide center platform, above Brambleton Avenue on the east side of Brambleton Avenue. Access to the station will be from an elevator and a set of staircases on the east side of Brambleton Avenue.
Ballentine Boulevard Station - The Ballentine Boulevard Station will be located approximately 50 feet west of Ballentine Boulevard.
Ingleside Station - The Ingleside Station will be located on the western side of Ingleside Road, between Mississippi Avenue and I-264. This station will be a walk-on station. There will be no bus service or off-street parking at the Ingleside Station.
Military Highway Station - The Military Highway Station will be located west of Military Highway just south of Curlew Drive. The site will include a bus drop-off area with three bus bays, and a park-and-ride lot consisting of 232 spaces. Access to the station and park-and-ride facility will be via Corporate Drive and Curlew Drive.
Newtown Road Station - The Newtown Road Station will be located along the Norfolk Southern Railroad right-of-way, just west of Newtown Road. The site will include a bus drop-off area with four bus bays and a park-and-ride lot consisting of 266 spaces.