Latest news with #LD1020
Yahoo
09-05-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Bill to kill Gorham Connector crashes in committee
May 8—A bill that would ensure the controversial Gorham Connector proposal is dead was soundly rejected by the Legislature's transportation committee this week. 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. Copy the Story Link
Yahoo
03-04-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Bill could kill Gorham Connector plan
Apr. 3—Opponents of the proposed Gorham Connector took their fight to the State House on Thursday, hoping to undo prior legislation that paved the way for the Maine Turnpike Authority to plan and build the now controversial $331 million highway spur. The Legislature's transportation committee heard three hours of testimony on LD 1020, a bill that would repeal previous laws directing the authority to plan and build a toll highway extension from South Portland to Gorham. It would also order the agency to sell any land purchased for the project to the previous owners or give it to the municipalities where the properties are located. 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 said they want to fully extinguish the connector proposal, even as the MTA last month enlisted the Maine Department of Transportation to conduct a review of alternative solutions to traffic congestion in towns west of Portland. The department and others opposed to the bill said the connector should be preserved as an option to be considered in the department's review. Sen. Stacey Brenner, D-Scarborough, the bill's primary sponsor, said the connector is an outdated and costly proposal that would do little to fix commuter congestion, worsen suburban sprawl and vehicle emissions, displace homes, and destroy wetlands, farmlands and forests. Brenner also noted that traffic counts dropped in the wake of the pandemic, in part because more people are working from home. "The costs far outweigh the benefits," Brenner told the committee. "We need to let this highway option go." Robb Cotiaux, president of the local Trout Unlimited chapter, urged the committee to support the bill to protect the Red Brook watershed, which stretches from Smiling Hill Farm in Westbrook to the Maine Mall area in South Portland. Gorham Town Councilor Lou Simms said the connector proposal should be abandoned and affected communities should take a more collaborative approach to finding alternative solutions to traffic congestion and residential sprawl. Myles Smith, a leader of Mainers for Smarter Transportation, said the public has been misled on the benefits of the connector proposal, which would shave an average of four minutes off rush-hour commutes. When a committee member, Rep. Wayne Parry, R-Arundel, questioned Smith's data, he said it came from an MTA study. The authority's spokesperson, Erin Courtney, clarified later that the connector would save some rush-hour commuters more than 10 minutes of travel time. Courtney also noted that the authority has spent $18 million planning and developing the connector proposal so far. Leading testimony against LD 1020 was Deputy Transportation Commissioner Dale Doughty, who said the connector proposal should remain in the department's toolbox as it studies all commuter congestion solutions in its upcoming review. "Everything should be on the table," Doughty said. Repealing the connector's authorization "presupposes the result of the study." Doughty also said the department opposes forcing the turnpike authority to sell property it has purchased for the connector, saying that the land is protected while the study is underway. Supporters of the bill acknowledged that the order to sell may warrant amending and that the land may be useful for other community and regional transit purposes, such as a recreational path. In the planning stages for more than 20 years, the spur would run from the recently rebuilt turnpike Exit 45 in South Portland, through Westbrook and Scarborough, to the Gorham Bypass at Route 114 in Gorham. The town councils in Scarborough and Westbrook have withdrawn their support for the project in recent months. SUPPORT IN QUESTION Gorham Town Manager Ephrem Paraschak stood to "strongly express" the town's opposition to the bill because growth and traffic congestion are major community issues. "All solutions and options (should) remain on the table," Paraschak told the committee. "We continue to be a willing partner with everyone." Kelly Flagg, executive director of the Associated General Contractors of Maine, also spoke against the bill, saying the connector has strong community support. However, a recent 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. The authority announced in March that it had asked the department of transportation to lead a two-year study that will include reviewing how the pandemic changed some of the underlying reasons for the 5-mile, four-lane toll highway extension. The decision followed a year of community conflict over the connector proposal and growing negative feedback "from the public and civic leaders who have called for a broader, more holistic and multimodal approach to addressing the region's mobility challenges," the authority said in a statement. The study will be completed in 2026. Copy the Story Link
Yahoo
03-04-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Southern Maine lawmakers want to repeal law authorizing controversial Gorham Connector
The proposed route of the Gorham Connector project that sought to expand suburban access to I-95. (Image via Maine Turnpike Authority) Lawmakers from southern Maine have banned together on legislation to scrap the controversial Gorham Connector project that sought to expand suburban access to I-95. While she knows the region needs a solution for traffic congestion driven by population growth, 'the connector is not the solution,' said Sen. Stacy Brenner (D-Cumberland), lead sponsor on the bill that is set to have a public hearing before the Transportation Committee Thursday afternoon. In 2017, the Maine Legislature passed legislation that allowed the Turnpike Authority to review traffic conditions west of Portland in Gorham, Scarborough, South Portland and Westbrook and build a five-mile connector to mitigate backups. Then-Gov. Paul LePage vetoed the bill because it was a toll access road, but lawmakers overwhelmingly voted to override his objection. When that law was passed, traffic projections were much higher than what is seen today, Brenner said. Traffic modeling assumes steady growth, she explained, but the reality depends on shifts in commuting patterns, land use and transportation choices, so it's important to base infrastructure designs on the most up-to-date data. Brenner said she heard concerns from residents and key municipalities 'loudly' on the campaign trail last summer. Opponents have said it is too large of a fix for a problem that only occurs at limited times in certain areas, according to reporting from the Portland Press Herald. And Brenner also pointed out that any route for the connector would cut through Smiling Hill Farm in Westbrook, a family-owned dairy farm and valued part of the community. Preserving local businesses and working landscapes is important when planning for future transportation needs, she said. The Gorham Connector would have linked the Maine Turnpike at Exit 45 to the Gorham Bypass off Route 114. The intention was to improve the connection to the Turnpike and I-295 while reducing the commuter traffic on neighborhood roads. With an estimated cost of at least $330 million, Brenner said there should be careful consideration of the investment, especially when studies from the Turnpike Authority show a new highway would only reduce commute times by an average of four minutes. 'Repealing the law allows for a fresh approach to transportation planning, ensuring that any future proposals align with community needs and priorities,' she said. 'Hundreds of constituents have contributed their time and voices into opposing this project and have asked for this bill to be brought forward.' LD 1020 would create that blank slate by repealing the 2017 law. It would also require the Turnpike Authority to resell any land purchased for the project back to the previous owner. If the previous owner doesn't want the property back, the bill stipulates that it would then be given to the municipality at no cost. If the municipality doesn't want the land, it would need to donate it to a local land trust. If they also don't want the land, then it can be offered for sale at a public auction. Other Democrats from that corner of the state have signed on to the bill, including Sen. Anne Carney of Cumberland County, and Reps. Drew Gattine of Westbrook, Kelly Murphy and Sophie Warren of Scarborough, as well as Eleanor Sato and Parnell Terry of Gorham. Rep. Laurie Osher (D-Orono) is also a cosponsor. Transportation officials agreed in early March to consider alternative plans for addressing traffic west of Portland. The Turnpike Authority asked the Maine Department of Transportation to do a two-year comprehensive review of the benefits and limitations of changing the existing infrastructure, as well as gather input from people affected by the traffic in that area. Although the landscape has evolved due to factors such as changes in post-pandemic commuting and the state's housing crisis, the Turnpike Authority said there could still be a need for an 'innovative transportation solution' for that area. Rather than expanding highways, Brenner said there should be an effort to strengthen existing urban areas, improve mobility options and support local economies. 'Thoughtful, data-driven planning will help ensure the best outcomes for the region's future,' she said. SUPPORT: YOU MAKE OUR WORK POSSIBLE
