PORTLAND - The Maine Turnpike Authority (MTA) is currently assessing growing safety and capacity challenges on the Portland-area section of the Turnpike, from Scarborough to Falmouth. Since 2014, traffic volumes in this section of the Turnpike have been growing at about three to five percent a year and are now at record highs.
The second public advisory committee meeting, scheduled for October 5th, 4-7 pm at Maine Turnpike Authority Headquarters at 2360 Congress Street Portland
, will feature a wide-ranging discussion of short and long-term changes currently proposed for the region’s transportation system by area planning and transportation agencies. Committee members will also consider potential solutions to accommodate the growing traffic on the Turnpike. All advisory committee meetings are open to the public and there will be time set aside at the end of each meeting for the public to ask questions and make comments.
At the first advisory committee meeting, Charles Colgan provided an economic overview for Cumberland County. His summary included the observation that regional mobility will remain high over the next decades, but technology will change significantly. This point of view is one that the Turnpike Authority and the advisory committee will incorporate into planning discussions.
Peter Mills, MTA executive director, noted, “The Turnpike is a key piece of the regional transportation network, and we will be carefully considering how any actions we take – or don’t take – would affect the rest of the system, now and in the future. That, along with making sure we can meet our customer expectations, is the focus of this effort.”
Detailed information about the needs assessment, as well as summaries of the collected data, a list of PAC members, Colgan/s presentation, and other important information, can all be found at
www.maineturnpike.com/PAM
The needs assessment will be completed by June 2018.
