24VAC30-61 Rules and Regulations Governing the Transportation of Hazardous Materials Through Bridge-Tunnel Facilities

REGULATIONS

Vol. 28 Iss. 1 - September 12, 2011

TITLE 24. TRANSPORTATION AND MOTOR VEHICLES

COMMONWEALTH TRANSPORTATION BOARD

Chapter 61

Final Regulation

REGISTRAR'S NOTICE: The Commonwealth Transportation Board is claiming an exemption from the Administrative Process Act in accordance with § 2.2-4006 A 3, which excludes regulations that consist only of changes in style or form or corrections of technical errors. The Commonwealth Transportation Board will receive, consider, and respond to petitions by any interested person at any time with respect to reconsideration or revision.

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 [phone], or email [e-mail].

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.

Name of Facility	Telephone Number	Route
Big Walker Mountain Tunnel	540-228-5571	Interstate 77
East River Mountain Tunnel	540-928-1994	Interstate 77
Elizabeth River Tunnel-Downtown	757-494-2424	Interstate 264
Elizabeth River Tunnel-Midtown	757-683-8123	Route 58
Hampton Roads Bridge-Tunnel	757-727-4832	Interstate 64
Monitor-Merrimac Memorial Bridge-Tunnel	757-247-2123	Interstate 64 664

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: [phone], 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.

*PROHIBITED* Materials defined in the following classes are not allowed passage through the four urban, water-proximate tunnels.
CATEGORY		PLACARD NAME	PLACARD REFERENCE
1.1		Explosives 1.1	49 CFR 172.522
1.2		Explosives 1.2	49 CFR 172.522
1.3		Explosives 1.3	49 CFR 172.522
2.3		Poison Gas	49 CFR 172.540
4.3		Dangerous When Wet	49 CFR 172.548
6.1 (PG I, inhalation hazard only)		Poison	49 CFR 172.554
*NO RESTRICTIONS* Materials in the following hazard classes are not restricted in the four urban, water-proximate tunnels.
CATEGORY	PLACARD NAME		PLACARD REFERENCE
1.4	Explosives 1.4		49 CFR 172.523
1.5	Explosives 1.5		49 CFR 172.524
1.6	Explosives 1.6		49 CFR 172.525
2.2	Nonflammable Gas		49 CFR 172.528
Combustible liquid 3	Combustible Liquids		49 CFR 172.544
4.1	Flammable Solid		49 CFR 172.546
4.2	Spontaneously Combustible		49 CFR 172.547
6.1 (PG I or II, other than PG I inhalation hazard)	Poison		49 CFR 172.554
6.1 (PG III)	Keep Away From Food		49 CFR 172.553
6.2	(None)
7 Radioactive	Radioactive		49 CFR 172.556
9	Class 9		49 CFR 172.560
ORM-D	(None)
*RESTRICTED* Materials in the following hazard classes are allowed access to the four urban, water-proximate tunnels in "Non-bulk" (maximum capacity of 119 gallons/450 liters or less as a receptacle for liquids, a water capacity of 1000 pounds/454 kilograms or less as a receptacle for gases, and a maximum net mass of 882 pounds/400 kilograms or less and a maximum capacity of 119 gallons/450 liters or less as a receptacle for solids) quantities per container only.
CATEGORY	PLACARD NAME		PLACARD REFERENCE
2.1	Flammable Gas		49 CFR 172.532
3	Flammable		49 CFR 172.542
5.1	Oxidizer		49 CFR 172.550
5.2	Organic Peroxide		49 CFR 172.552
8	Corrosive		49 CFR 172.558

VA.R. Doc. No. R12-2957; Filed August 24, 2011, 8:12 a.m.