Population changes in the Twin Cities and Lisbon have changed traffic patterns.
A transportation plan that calls for a new downtown Auburn turnpike interchange, new routes between Lewiston-Auburn and the coast of Maine, and passenger rail service to the area should begin making the public rounds in November.
Don Craig, director of the Androscoggin Transportation Resource Center, said the plan is a blue print for the organization for the next 20 years and is required by state and federal law.
“To qualify for federal grant money, all metropolitan planning organizations must create a 20 year plan and update it every three years,” Craig said.
The 33-page document describes the current conditions in Androscoggin County, including household income, jobs and commuter patterns.
It notes that Lewiston, Auburn and Lisbon have all lost population in the last 10 years, while the surrounding communities such as Sabattus, Minot, Durham and Poland have all grown, altering the traffic patterns in the area.
The report suggests a handful of road projects and creation of passenger rail service between Auburn, the rest of Maine and Montreal.
The transportation center’s policy committee was scheduled to approve the plan at their meeting Wednesday. State transportation officials asked them to wait a month, however.
“The state wanted to see a better link between our general goals and the major projects we have planned,” Craig said. “They want us to demonstrate more clearly how the projects we plan will fulfill the goals we set for ourselves.”
The policy committee is now scheduled to approve the plan at their Oct. 23 meeting. It will be available to the public after that, he said.
The plan will be available in three formats, according to Bob Thompson, executive director of the Androscoggin Valley Council of Governments. In addition to the report, the group is creating an eight-page executive summary.
“That can be handed out like a brochure,” Thompson said. “It should answer most questions. People that want more detail can read the full report. And the people that really want the specific detail, we have all of the background information and studies that have been a part of this.”
staylor@sunjournal.com
Send questions/comments to the editors.
Success. Please wait for the page to reload. If the page does not reload within 5 seconds, please refresh the page.
Enter your email and password to access comments.
Hi, to comment on stories you must . This profile is in addition to your subscription and website login.
Already have a commenting profile? .
Invalid username/password.
Please check your email to confirm and complete your registration.
Only subscribers are eligible to post comments. Please subscribe or login first for digital access. Here’s why.
Use the form below to reset your password. When you've submitted your account email, we will send an email with a reset code.