Local leaders have been working with Rep. Rob Wittman (R-Montross) to alleviate the burden Middle Peninsula residents have borne in tolls for maintaining the span of the George P. Coleman Memorial Bridge.

This week, language is before the U.S. House of Representatives that, if approved, would set into motion the possibility of lessening the tolls on the bridge down the road.

The language comes as part of a National Defense Authorization Bill, authored by Wittman, which specifies the budget and expenditures of the United States Department of Defense. In it, Wittman encourages the U.S. Secretary of Defense to provide a briefing to the House Committee on Armed Services, no later than March 1, 2018, to assess the military value of the Coleman Bridge.

Wittman said daily bridge commuters can pay upwards of $500 a year in tolls, some of which go to operate the bridge’s double swing span.

The idea, according to Wittman, is to direct the DOD to assume some or all financial responsibility for the maintenance of the bridge, as U.S. Navy ships have used the span for decades in their transit to and from the Naval Weapons Station in Yorktown. 

Wittman, who is a member of the House Armed Services Committee and chairs the Seapower and Projection Forces Subcommittee, noted in the language that the Coleman is “critical to the efficient transport of cargo to and from Naval Weapons Station Yorktown. The bridge’s unique double swing design allows transport vessels bound for military installations upstream to reach their destinations without delay.”

The language in the bill goes on to state, “The committee wishes to better understand the benefit the Department is deriving from commuter tolls and whether commuters are bearing an unfair burden.”

The briefing, Wittman continued, should go beyond just assessing the military value of the span, and should also include details on the utilization rate of the span by the DOD and other non-DOD upriver traffic. He said it should also address the Defense Department’s discussions with local and state stakeholders who have a fiduciary responsibility for construction and management of the bridge; summarize any DOD authorities and opportunities to help mitigate costs, and provide the DOD’s views on whether such mitigations are appropriate.

Wittman said he has been working with county staff and the Gloucester County Board of Supervisors for quite some time setting into motion an avenue that could bring some relief to residents paying the tolls. “Through our efforts, Congressman Rob Wittman is supporting language asking the Navy to look at the Coleman Bridge to potentially reduce costs,” said Phillip Bazzani, chair of the county’s board of supervisors. “This is a precedent!”

Bazzani said he has been leading the effort with Gloucester County Administrator Brent Fedors and Wittman to encourage the Navy to pay for the operation and maintenance of the span and spearheaded the discussion, which got the matter to this point. 

“What we have achieved is an unprecedented achievement at the federal level,” Bazzani added. “It requires the Navy to perform an assessment of their role and impact of costs relative to operation and maintenance.”

“If this plan under Congressman Wittman goes through, it would go a long way towards reducing the tolls since the original debt structure required Gloucester citizens to pay for operations and maintenance through tolls,” Bazzani said. “The original debt for the construction of the bridge will be retired in 2021. Under the enabling legislation that created the original construction bonds, there are no statutory requirements to continue tolls for operations and maintenance after 2021.”

“This increased collaboration will continue a mutually-beneficial relationship for the Navy and for the residents of nearby Gloucester and York counties,” Wittman added. “I look forward to working with Supervisor Phil Bazzani and gaining his input from the Gloucester County perspective as this process moves forward.”

Wittman said he feels confident the language in the bill will pass, most likely by today on the House floor. It then will have to go to the Senate and through several committee hearings before it arrives on President Trump’s desk to be signed. Once it reaches this final step, it would be put before the Commonwealth Transportation Board for a decision on what to do with the tolls.

“We can’t dictate what the state does with the tolls,” Wittman said. “But we can underwrite the costs associated with the maintenance of the bridge.”

Bazzani said he and other county leaders are working with the CTB and VDOT to work out the implications of post-debt retirement operations and maintenance costs. “Given the legislative effort in Congress through Congressman Wittman, and with the state, the goal would be to significantly reduce toll rates on the bridge,” Bazzani said.

“As far as I am aware, this is the first time that we have asked for or received any Congressional support with respect to the financial structure of the debt and operation and maintenance cost for the bridge,” he added. “I applaud Congressman Wittman’s effort … A precedent has been set and I’m proud to have achieved it.”

Bazzani has been pushing this effort since he was elected to the board of supervisors three-and-a-half years ago. “And I believe we have accomplished a significant milestone to alleviate the unfair burden to Gloucester County residents as a result of paying debt on the bridge,” he said, noting that Gloucester residents pay and bear the burden of about 70 percent of the debt. 

“Congressman Wittman has decided to take up this issue on behalf of our citizens and I will continue to work with (him) and plan to attend any Congressional hearings regarding the bridge following my reelection year,” Bazzani said.