AUBURN – A new facility that will house and service a fleet of public buses is under way on Merrow Road.
Western Maine Transportation Services Inc. plans to build its new home on six acres near Hotel Road. The new facility will consolidate the transportation company’s temporary home on Washington Street and its operation in Mexico into one location.
“One of the things we looked at was cost savings, and we expect efficiencies from one location,” said Glenn Gordon.
The move consolidates the administrative and maintenance staff of WMTS into one location. Five employees who work at the Mexico facility will make the move.
The cost of the project should come in at just under $1 million. Footings are expected to be poured this week and a formal groundbreaking ceremony open to the public is planned for 10 a.m. Tuesday, Oct. 11.
If all goes according to plan, the new transportation center should be up and running in June 2006. About 30 buses will be stored there.
Gordon said WMTS is expanding its maintenance work, and recently acquired the service contract on some Portland-based buses. It also is negotiating with Brunswick’s Coastal Transportation for the service work on its fleet.
WMTS maintains its own fleet of 39 vehicles, plus 10 CityLink buses that shuttle people around Lewiston and Auburn, said Gordon.
He said WMTS had been scouting a new location for a few years now. The transportation company recently renewed its contract with CityLink, which meant several more years of maintenance work.
“We wanted an adequate facility for that work,” said Gordon.
WMTS was founded in 1976 as a nonprofit corporation to coordinate public transportation services for Androscoggin, Franklin and Oxford counties.
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