PORTLAND (AP) – The Maine Turnpike would be widened from four to six lanes between Scarborough and Falmouth under a bill submitted to the Legislature.

A public hearing on a proposal to widen the 8.7-mile stretch of road between exit 44 and exit 53 will be held today before the Legislature’s Transportation Committee.

The project would take place only if the Maine Turnpike Authority determines that alternatives are not sufficient to address congestion on the corridor. State law requires that options other than widening be evaluated to determine if they would address the problem.

If the widening goes forward, construction would begin in 2010 and would be financed through a toll increase. The Maine Turnpike Authority is proposing to spend $75 million for the widening and another $75 million to upgrade bridges and do other modernization work.

Another bill that will be discussed today is designed to relieve traffic congestion on Interstate 295.

The bill would direct the turnpike authority to work with the Maine Department of Transportation to develop “tolling strategies” that create incentives for trucks to use the turnpike instead of I-295.

Rep. Boyd Marley, D-Portland, who is sponsoring the bill, said he uses I-295 between Portland and West Gardiner because it’s free, and he suspects large trucks do the same, adding to congestion on I-295, particularly in Portland.

One goal of the legislation is to get the Transportation Department and the turnpike authority to work together and look at the roads as a whole rather than independently.

Even though the turnpike authority has to go to the Legislature for approval of various items, the authority’s budget contains no state revenue.

The authority says 90 percent of the budget is financed with toll collections, with the rest coming from leases at turnpike service plazas and other fees.