A recent op-ed written on Maine’s transportation system (“Maine’s transportation system barely exists,” April 14) found much to criticize but offered nothing in the way of solutions.

In metro Boston, the population is approximately 4.5 million. Maine, with a land mass larger than the rest of New England combined, has approximately 1.3 million people. The writer says 90,000 adult Mainers lack a driver’s license. How many of that number want a license? The writer also states that “many are in their 20s.” How many? The piece was peppered with apparent political opinion, without even a hint of solutions.

Reading between the lines, I suspect the writer is a public transportation advocate, which is an admirable position. The two key elements of public transportation are cost and use. In a state with 1.3 million people, where most towns and cities struggle just to keep their streets and roads drivable, raising taxes for public transportation would be a non-starter.

I too was an economics major, at UMO, and solved the world’s problems in class (and frequently after class, at Pat’s Pizza). Without the collaboration of all stakeholders, solutions will not come to fruition.

Tom Conger
Gorham