While Portland continues to be nationally recognized for its “green” accolades and eco-friendly living, the Maine Department of Transportation has proposed to widen 295 and essentially throw money at the highways to solve the increasing transportation issues plaguing our city and state.
In October, current funding for the Downeaster train will be up, and considering the current state of transportation affairs I don’t see how this can be seen as anything but an opportunity — an opportunity to refocus our entire state’s transportation system toward those eco- and commuter-friendly alternatives we now pass by out of convenience.
Let’s turn Maine into a rail, bike, and foot friendly state!
Some argue the Downeaster does not serve enough of the state and is therefore unworthy of our collective funding. I encourage these folks to look to the near future.
If the proposed plans for extending the Downeaster to Brunswick are as successful as the Portland to Boston route has been, what’s to stop services from extending even further north?
Whats to say that a Mainer in Aroostook County won’t soon be able to take a public bus to their local train station and commute down to Augusta, Portland, Wells, or even Boston?
Yes, Maine is rural at heart, but our transportation options do not need to be limited by this. Allowing Maine to refocus our vision of “the way life should be” and to become a rail, trail, and pedestrian oriented state will in effect preserve the rural features we all hold dear in our great state.
Sara Gallagher
Social work student