Chesapeake Bay Bridge–Tunnel in the context of "Chesapeake Bay"

⭐ In the context of the Chesapeake Bay, the Chesapeake Bay Bridge–Tunnel is considered a crucial component of what aspect of the region?

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⭐ Core Definition: Chesapeake Bay Bridge–Tunnel

The Chesapeake Bay Bridge–Tunnel (CBBT, officially the Lucius J. Kellam Jr. Bridge–Tunnel) is a 17.6-mile (28.3 km) bridge–tunnel that crosses the mouth of the Chesapeake Bay between Delmarva and Hampton Roads in the U.S. commonwealth of Virginia. It opened in 1964, replacing ferries that had operated since the 1930s. A major project to dualize its bridges was completed in 1999, and in 2017 a similar project was started to dualize one of its tunnels.

With 12 miles (19 km) of bridges and two one-mile-long (1.6 km) tunnels, the CBBT is one of only 14 bridge–tunnel systems in the world and one of three in both Hampton Roads and the United States. It carries US 13, which saves motorists roughly 95 miles (153 km) and 1+1⁄2 hours on trips between Hampton Roads and the Delaware Valley and points north compared with other routes through the Washington–Baltimore Metropolitan Area. As of January 2021, over 140 million vehicles have crossed the CBBT.

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👉 Chesapeake Bay Bridge–Tunnel in the context of Chesapeake Bay

The Chesapeake Bay (/ˈtʃɛsəpiːk/ CHESS-ə-peek) is the largest estuary in the United States. The bay is located in the Mid-Atlantic region and is primarily separated from the Atlantic Ocean by the Delmarva Peninsula, including parts of the Eastern Shore of Maryland, the Eastern Shore of Virginia, and the state of Delaware. The mouth of the bay at its southern point is located between Cape Henry and Cape Charles. With its northern portion in Maryland and the southern part in Virginia, the Chesapeake Bay is a very important feature for the ecology and economy of those two states, as well as others surrounding within its watershed. More than 150 major rivers and streams flow into the bay's 64,299-square-mile (166,534 km) drainage basin, which covers parts of six states (New York, Pennsylvania, Delaware, Maryland, Virginia, and West Virginia) and all of Washington, D.C.

The bay is approximately 200 miles (320 km) long from its northern headwaters in the Susquehanna River to its outlet in the Atlantic Ocean. It is 2.8 miles (4.5 km) wide at its narrowest (between Kent County's Plum Point near Newtown in the east and the Harford County western shore near Romney Creek) and 30 miles (48 km) at its widest (just south of the mouth of the Potomac River, which divides Maryland from Virginia). Total shoreline including tributaries is 11,684 miles (18,804 km), circumnavigating a surface area of 4,479 square miles (11,601 km). Average depth is 21 feet (6.4 m), reaching a maximum of 174 feet (53 m). The bay is spanned twice, in Maryland by the Chesapeake Bay Bridge from Sandy Point (near Annapolis) to Kent Island and in Virginia by the Chesapeake Bay Bridge–Tunnel connecting Virginia Beach to Cape Charles.

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Chesapeake Bay Bridge–Tunnel in the context of U.S. Route 13

U.S. Route 13 or U.S. Highway 13 (US 13) is a north–south United States Numbered Highway established in 1926 that runs for 518 miles (834 km) from Interstate 95 (I-95) just north of Fayetteville, North Carolina, to US 1 in the northeastern suburbs of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, near Morrisville. In all, it traverses five states in the Atlantic coastal plain region. It follows the Atlantic coast more closely than does the main north–south U.S. Highway of the region, US 1. Because of this, its number is out of place on the general U.S. Highway numbering grid, as it should be running west of US 11 but does not. Its routing is largely rural, the notable exceptions being the Hampton Roads area in Virginia and the northern end of the highway in Delaware and Pennsylvania. It is also notable for being the main thoroughfare for the Delmarva Peninsula and carrying the Chesapeake Bay Bridge–Tunnel to it in Virginia.

US 13's original plan in 1926 had the route serve no further south than the Delmarva Peninsula. However, it has been extended many times, connecting to the mainland via ferry service and eventually reaching North Carolina. This link across the mouth of the Chesapeake Bay became fixed in 1964 with a bridge–tunnel. The entire route on the Delmarva Peninsula, except for a few sections in Accomack County, Virginia, has been dualized fully with four lanes, and further upgrades continue, such as a freeway section around the east side of Salisbury, Maryland.

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LINKED FROM (PARENTS)
← Chesapeake Bay ← U.S. Route 13
LINKS TO (CHILDREN)
Bridge–tunnel → Chesapeake Bay → Delmarva Peninsula → Hampton Roads → Virginia → Dual carriageway → Tunnel → List of bridge–tunnels → U.S. Route 13 → Delaware Valley → Washington–Baltimore metropolitan area →