The Tide is a 7.4 mi (12 km) light rail line in Norfolk, Virginia, United States, owned and operated by Hampton Roads Transit (HRT).

In the late 1980s, the Tidewater Transportation District Commission (TTDC) began producing studies that would examine the feasibility of expanding transit corridors between Norfolk and its neighboring cities of Chesapeake, Portsmouth, Suffolk, and Virginia Beach; these included a study for the cost effectiveness of restoring passenger rail service in 1986 and a rail systems analysis in 1991.

[4]: S-1  Four years later, TTDC pursued a Major Investment Study and in 1997, identified a locally preferred alternative for an 18-mile (29 km) east–west light rail line between downtown Norfolk and the Virginia Beach oceanfront.

[4]: S-6–S-7  In 1999, the Virginia Beach City Council asked its residents in a referendum whether it should adopt a local ordinance to help develop and finance the light rail project.

[11] As an interim measure, the board hired former VDOT Commissioner Philip Shucet for 1 year effective February 1, 2010 at the rate of $40,000 per month to lead the agency, with a mandate to restore financial integrity and communication pending selection of a new executive director.

[12] In May 2010 elections, voters ousted Norfolk city councilman Randy Wright, a long-time incumbent, HRT board member, and light rail supporter.

News media sources reported that "Three million dollars [of HRT funds designated for projects on the Virginia Peninsula] were diverted to Norfolk to [help] pay for its light rail cost overrun".

"[14] In September 2007, HRT's commission voted to purchase nine Siemens-built S70 vehicles, similar to those currently in operation in Houston, Texas and Charlotte, North Carolina.

[21] Actual daily ridership up to April 17, 2012 was approximately 4,900, allowing the service to reach its goal of 1 million rides 150 days earlier than had been projected.

That right-of-way had carried both freight and passenger traffic until the end of World War II, and then operated as a freight-only railway for several additional decades.

[24][25] The Commonwealth of Virginia's Department of Rail & Public Transportation is studying possible extensions to The Tide in several different directions within the multi-city Hampton Roads area.

[26] A second possible extension would continue The Tide from the Medical Center terminus to Naval Station Norfolk,[26] which would connect Old Dominion University to the light rail service.

As another possible LRT extension, most of the former NS Railway line from the Witchduck Road area south to the Virginia Beach Municipal Center remains currently undeveloped.

In 2011 the city of Virginia Beach suggested it might extend The Tide light rail service east from the Newtown Road terminus.

Local media and special interest groups debated the matter in great detail, using information provided by a Draft Environmental impact statement (DEIS).

Voters of Virginia Beach rejected the proposed light rail system citing possible unwanted bad elements a passenger train could bring.

[29] In April 2012, the Virginia Beach City Council voted 10–1 to allow voters to determine the fate of the extension in the November 2012 general election.

[27] In the April 2011 State of the City, Sessoms said "whether the corridor is eventually developed with Bus Rapid Transit or a light rail line is unknown at this time," citing cost and ridership issues.