What is the problem that creates a need for an east-west highway? Or is there a need to transport tons of produce and natural resources across long distances at a reasonable cost?
The Legislature and a group of private investors feel the highway will solve the problem. However, a highway corridor bisecting the most pristine areas of the state will cut a huge swath, a raw gash through the heart of what people feel is the heart and soul of Maine’s wilderness. Are we truly ready to physically separate the two Maines we so often speak about in economic and cultural terms?
The most reasonable and affordable solution would be to rebuild the former rail beds that crisscross Maine from Fort Kent to Kittery and from Calais to Coburn Gore to move our natural resources and those of the other New England states and our Canadian neighbors up, back, around and through our state.
There are maps clearly showing where Maine’s commerce once traveled by rail. The right-of-ways exist and ownership can be established. Rebuilding railroad beds and establishing land ports where freight could be shipped in containers transported by rail, sea or land would stimulate the economy of places on the international trade routes’ crossing places.
Shipping large and bulk products by rail is already common for a number of the mills in Maine. The 124th Legislature provided funding for the continuation of a rail line north to south in Aroostook County to provide shipping for its biggest businesses. Amtrak is gradually coming up the coast and there is a renewed interest in using alternatives to gasoline fueled trucks and autos for travel and commerce. The time is right to consider railroad transport again.
The reestablishment of the rails system also would promote the continued development of our three-port strategy. The idea of moving oil, gas, minerals, produce, marine goods and lumber easily and cost effectively is thought provoking. Just as a great part of Searsport’s success is based on its rail access, connecting Eastport to a renewed rail system would help the port to find its place and grow and thrive.
Other states use their railroads much more extensively and cost effectively than we do. The rest of the world does. We can too!
With tourism as one of our biggest industries, the toll highway would be a distraction. We don’t need to provide a way for tourists to drive through us without stopping to appreciate our beautiful coasts, river valleys, farmlands, mountains and the parks scattered among them. We could provide train rides if people want to “see” our wilderness without destroying it. We could continue the “Rails to Trails” as “Rails with Trails” or “Rails with Trails and Pipelines” for year-round sports access and commerce.
The rail system would be part of the tourism industry, a special draw for our ecotourists. We want and need our tourists to come and visit for a while.
Is it too much to hope that some of the funds the Legislature just allocated to study the feasibility of an east-west highway might also be used to consider the feasibility of a revitalized rail system for Maine as part of a comprehensive approach to transportation issues? An environmentally sound and economically sustainable solution is what is really needed for the betterment of the state’s economy, its commercial development and transportation needs.
Using private investment funds to reconstitute railroads would be more efficacious than squandering valuable financial resources in legal suits over environmental concerns, eminent domain and other personal injury issues. There are serious environmental and human costs when starting huge projects from scratch.
The people of Maine want jobs and a future for their families. They will support those who are working to create a sound economy. The Legislature and the private investors must remember that this transportation solution should support our citizens’ efforts to succeed and thrive.
Veronica Garvey Magnan is a former Democratic legislator representing House District 41. She lives in Sandy Point.
It’s too bad that the “crew” in Augusta isn’t susceptible to the common sense that you’ve outlined.
It’s worse than you think. MDOT had to buy most of the MMA Railway’s north-south rail line to Aroostook because it wasn’t economical to run. Now the State is getting behind a new road parallel to MMA’s east-west line.
Very good perspective. Revitalizing the rails is something we need for future development for all the people of Maine, not a for profit highway that enriches only a few.
Rail works ok for commodoties that aren’t needed for on time delivery. The rest of the freight has to be at locations on time to maintain a smooth flow of goods.
Yes they will deliver your product cheaper than trucks. If you have a RR siding that you pay rent on.
If you don’t have a rail side location they can’t deliver.
Rail is ok if you are willing to have a large warehouse to store the bulk shipments when the do arrive at your rail side delivery point.
The tracks have been ripped up in New Hampshire and Mass too so there would be nothing to connect these revitalized rails to. It’s very doubtful that anyone would invest in a railroad project. The railroads don’t make money here…that’s why the state now owns over 200 miles of it. We need to build the highway…sooner the better.
Rails are in Quebec and New Brunswick. Look at a contemporary rail map. Hello.
Roadbeds or railbeds, either way she’s made the point. Rather than re-invent the wheel, at a cost of $ 300 K, why not re-establish these right’s of way and set the proposed roadway on it ? Legally the big issues have already been settled and are now a matter of record. Engineeringwise, why would Cianbro, or any other responsible engineering and construction company, want to go thru all the aggravation of re-engineering a whole new roadway, with the attendant legal and environmental problems attached, when they have already been done for them ? No, Debbie Magnan has this one right on target. That Vigue and company are so dead-set against it has me, and I’d be willing to bet not just a few other folk’s, wondering the Big WHY as well ?
It also makes me wonder why the DOT hasn’t proposed this before now too. This one is such a ‘in your face’ slam dunk simple solution that can accomidate everyone’s needs that to ignore it tells me that there’s a whole lot more going on than is being said or seen. And that, my friends, tells me that there are some serious backroom $ deal’s being made in Augusta right now. And LePage wonders why the need for transparency is so badly needed ? November is coming and I’m just waiting to see if this E-W Road Project is gonna be a done deal before OR AFTER the election, ’cause at this point it doesn’t even come close to passing the ‘stinky finger’ test.
DOT hasn’t proposed this before because the highway is being pushed by the private sector who will profit from the construction of the highway. The railway makes so much sense from an economic and environmental perspective, it should be given real consideration. Unfortunately, given today’s political environment, private profit and not public good will probably rule.
DOT, surprise us!!
Actually nothing needs to be re-established. The existing and underused MMA Railway and Eastern Maine Railway tracks from Montreal to St. John pass through Jackman, Greenville, Brownville Jct, Mattawwamkeag and Vanceboro. They could handle plenty of new trailer or container traffic right now, no new construction needed. With diesel fuel at $5 per gallon does it make sense to build new roads parallel to exising railroads? I’m concerned that this “study” is going to be one-sided and tell Cianbro exactly what it wants to hear.
Very true which is why this ‘study’ that Cianbro is going to do is, and that Maine is paying for to the tune of $ 300,000.– so far, is at the very least while calling it politely as possible ‘moosepoop’, more than suspect simply because it is a given business fact that anyone paying for a ‘study’ is going to get what they want to hear or see, not the actual truth. George and his Iraqi ‘nuclear weapons program’ are now seen as the poster child for this type of crap to be looked for. This is why the study needs to be done by an independent source, and then ALL THE FACT’S verified by a 3rd Party, before a single public dollar gets spent on a single shovel of dirt being turned.
This whole E-W Road issue is nothing, that I’ve seen, but a huge politically planned giveaway to the Canadian logging and trucking companies that are having to drive up the St Lawrence Valley before turning south to go to either Halifax or one of the Fundy port’s. Either way, Maine doesn’t see a dime of revenue besides Customs duties, if that’s possible given the NAFTA Provision’s, coming to Maine. And as far as their needing to re-fuel and the fuel excise taxes, please ! All they have to do is put on a set of the 600 gallon Arctic fuel tank’s ( i.e. 1200 gallons a truck), refuel at either Sherbrooke or Drummondville on the West end or at Perth or Fredericton on the East end and they are gonna be going thru Maine never needing to stop, beside the odd breakdown. This whole road plan is starting to smell like another Kestrel deal with Maine having to give ‘it’ all up for the hope of a better deal on the end. My question, and it’s not a ‘tough’ one to realize and ask, is simply this. Who stand’s to benefit the most from a roadway that they don’t need to pay for in any way and yet be able to use for a minimum cost while not being responsible for it’s maintainence ? Now, am I on track or did I miss the turnip truck 2 stop’s back ?
You forgot one thing. The road is proposed to be built with $2,000,000,000 of private money (yes two billion with a “b”) and run for profit. If I’ve figured it right, at 30 years and 5 percent, the debt service on this would be about $11,000,000 per month, or $367,000 PER DAY. Now when this goes belly up, who pays?
Which, Sir, is why I am calling for a serious independent surveying and estimating of this planned roadway. If this road goes up in smoke, and you’re all but admitting it’s gonna happen now, it’s gonna be the Maine taxpayer that’s gonna get stuck. Now who’s gonna be the one’s benefiting from all of thsi supposed planning ? This whole E-W roadway project is nothing more than a bunch of political pandering to a few Special Interest Group’s trying to use the State’s Treasury for their own benefit. And I, along with a number of others, would be very interested to see just who Cianbro’s doing this Survey for as far as their ‘Private Investor’s list goes. That list alone is going to be the proof that this road is being built for the benefit of a few. That Paulie is not saying anything about this is also a huge sign that even he see’s this roadway for what it is.
I don’t know you Veronica but I would suspect you are an environmentalist with ties to the railroad. Why not make a point for both sides of this and let the voters decide. I for one have been in favor of an East West highway for many years just because there is no good way to get from one side of the state to the other ! Traveling north south on the interstate is quick and saves on maintainance and fuel costs on all of us while traveling east west through the many small towns on poorly constructed and maintained roads is expensive. Although I would prefer this highway to be constructed a little further south I think it’s time is way overdue !
As luck would have it, Ms. Magnan’s wonderful dose of common sense appears in the BDN at a time when gas prices are once again heading north of $4.00 a gallon, with diesel significantly more than that. Give the fact that petrol is a global commodity with a price level driven by speculators and global markets (like China’s), the days of cheap gas are gone. And no, American conservatives, you cannot drill your way to cheaper prices unless you take the eminently socialist step of nationalizing all petroleum products that come out of the ground.
So, by all means let’s build ANOTHER roadway to make it easier for Canadian trucks to travel across Maine! Even by American standards of short-term thinking this project doesn’t pass the straight-face test; global pricing forces on gas and diesel are not going away, and in terms of efficient transportation of freight nothing gets close to rail. Nothing. One fairly straight-ahead comparison gives us some insight as to energy efficiency: according to the US Transportation Energy book, 2004 edition, BTU expenditure per short-ton mile for heavy trucks is 3,357; the same load can be moved the same distance by rail for 341. Granted the restoration of Maine’s rail network will be expensive- but someone with facts at hand tell me that building a vehicle-dependent roadway in a world of perpetually rising petroleum products will make sense financial or otherwise by 2050.
Most companies live on a short supply trucks you can depend on right now the tracks are real bad in Maine when the speed is only 10 mph that’s because the railroad has not kept up the tracks . Also when a company calls the railroad an tells them we need x amount of cars the railroad needs to supply those cars an not tell the companies im sorry you can’t have that many. Plus when the cars are full they can’t set around an the railroad need to pick them up an send them on there way an not set in the yards for 24 to 48 hrs. So as you can see the railroad would half to get there act together but i really dough that would ever happen even with the governments help
None of you people get it. It is all about a high speed highway 75 MPH going East West for the the Canadian Trucking Industry. High Speed Rail does not exist in Maine and will never exist in Maine. Maine has no industry to support the rails that is why most have been abandoned many years ago.
An fright train will never be able to go 75 mph even on the best of rails at the most they would be able to go 40 mph
Exactly. This is why this comes up every few years. If Irving wants a road across Maine, then let them pay for it. Fence it adequately also.
Veronica Garvey Magnan has apparently never had to ship anything via rail. In my experience, rail is fine as long as you are shipping a non-perishable product, don’t care when it actually leaves your facility, nor care when it arrives at your customer.
Perishable product = truck.
Reliable ship date = truck.
Reliable delivery date = truck.
Ruining the planet and catering to the trucking lobby: truck