Bill to kill Gorham Connector crashes in committee
LD 1020 would repeal 2017 legislation that directed the Maine Turnpike Authority to plan and build a toll highway extension from South Portland, through Scarborough and Westbrook, to Gorham.
The bill follows the authority's announcement in March that it enlisted the Maine Department of Transportation to consider alternative solutions to commuter traffic congestion west of Portland. Neither agency has said the connector proposal has been dropped entirely.
The bill also would order the authority to sell any land purchased for the project to the previous owners or give it to the municipalities where the properties are located. If municipalities didn't want the land, the authority would have to offer it to a local land trust before selling it.
The authority has spent $6.3 million on 15 properties totaling 340 acres, or about 30% of the 50 parcels the authority would need to complete the project.
The bill's supporters say they want to make sure the plan to build a 5-mile, four-lane toll highway isn't considered a viable option in the upcoming study, which is expected to take 18 to 24 months.
The committee sided with the bill's opponents, including Department of Transportation officials, who said eliminating the connector proposal from potential solutions would predetermine the outcome of the study before it starts.
"I don't think you'd want to do any of those things until you knew what the options were," said Sen. Brad Farrin, R-Norridgewock, a committee member.
The committee voted 9-3 Wednesday to recommend that LD 1020 "ought not to pass" when it goes before the House and Senate in the coming weeks.
The committee instructed Department of Transportation officials to report back early next year on the study's progress.
"I don't want the department or the turnpike expending resources and energy and time without community support," said Rep. Lydia Crafts, D-Newcastle, committee chair.
The MTA has already spent $18 million developing the connector proposal, which has been in the works for more than 20 years.
Now estimated to cost at least $331 million, the project drew organized opposition after the authority announced its preferred route in February 2024.
Public dissent swelled last summer, when an MTA poll found that 45% of respondents said they oppose (12%) or strongly oppose (33%) the connector, while 40% said they support (20%) or strongly support (20%) building the road. Municipal councils in Scarborough and Westbrook withdrew their support.
Supporters of the highway project say it would be an effective solution to traffic congestion, especially as more homes are being built in communities west of Portland.
Connector opponents say it's an outdated and costly proposal that would do little to fix commuter congestion. They say it would displace homes, worsen suburban sprawl and vehicle emissions, and destroy wetlands, farmlands and forests.
They also note that traffic counts dropped in the wake of the pandemic, in part because more people are working from home, and they say options such as roundabouts and other improvements to existing roads would be cheaper and less invasive.
The transportation committee also rejected another turnpike-related bill, LD 1292, also sponsored by Sen. Stacey Brenner, D-Scarborough, recommending 12-1 that it "ought not to pass." It would require the authority to transfer additional toll revenue collected beyond its legislatively approved budget to the Department of Transportation's highway fund.
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