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Now that the weather is warming, the season of road work is quickly approaching in Maine.
In the midcoast, details of that work are starting to emerge.
The Maine Department of Transportation has released its three-year work plan, which outlines how the state is investing $4.8 billion on more than 2,700 projects in the coming years. With the help of funding from the federal Bipartisan Infrastructure Law passed in 2021, the agency said its broad goal is to shift from “make do” to “make progress.”
This year, drivers in the midcoast can expect many typical road repairs, from repaving on busy Route 1 to the replacement of bridges and culverts. But, there are other more distinct projects in the works as well, including new bike paths and ferry terminal upgrades. In one case, a midcoast town is even getting a new roundabout.
Here are some of the most important transportation construction projects happening on the midcoast this year:
A new roundabout
It’s not every day a community gets a totally new traffic pattern, let alone one as distinct as a roundabout.
But in Damariscotta, that’s the solution that engineers have come up with to address the danger facing drivers at the busy intersection of Route 1 and Belvedere Road.
Nineteen crashes happened there in the five-year period from 2016 to 2020, including one that was fatal, Maine DOT officials have said, according to the Lincoln County News. And 62 percent of those crashes resulted in injuries, compared to an average of 36 percent across all of Maine’s rural intersections.
Construction of the roundabout is set to begin this month and finish in November. While the intersection is under construction, Maine DOT will temporarily use traffic signals while closing Belvedere Road to the west and barring southbound Route 1 traffic from turning east on Belvedere Road.
The project will also add new signs, striping and lighting to improve safety.
Road and bridge projects
Route 1 is getting several other repairs throughout the midcoast.
Some of the biggest projects are concentrated in Brunswick. Among other upgrades, Maine DOT has reserved $16 million for repairs to nearly three miles along the northbound and southbound parts of Route 1, starting roughly near the intersection of Cushing Street and extending west to Old Bath Road.
At the other end of the midcoast, the Veterans Memorial Bridge in Belfast, which carries Route 1 over the Passagassawaukeag River, is also coming in for work. Maine DOT plans repairs on the western side of the bridge, including regrading and stabilizing the land beneath it, and jacking up its superstructure so that its bearings can be refurbished. The section of rail trail under the bridge may be closed to pedestrians during the work.
Elsewhere in the midcoast, at least three bridges will be replaced this year, including the Meadow Brook Bridge along Route 215 in Newcastle; the Farrar Bridge along Route 105 in Washington; and the Colson Bridge along Route 1A Prospect.
A large culvert on Route 7 in Brooks is also set to be replaced, and a mile of Sears Island Road in Searsport will be stabilized.
Three bike paths in the midcoast are being built or repaired as well, in Brunswick, Bath and the Boothbay region.
Ferry projects
Maine’s state ferry terminals also have big changes in store this year and beyond, with the state DOT reserving $105 million for those projects over the next three years.
Buildings at the Vinalhaven state ferry terminal will be demolished and removed this year — it’s unclear which buildings — and the transfer bridges at Bass Harbor, Swans Island, Vinalhaven and North Haven will all be upgraded.
The Lincolnville and Islesboro ferry bridge approaches will also be repaired this year, and the Lincolnville ferry terminal will receive upgrades to accommodate for the charging of the hybrid ferry that is set to start its service in 2027.
Airport projects
Three of the midcoast’s airports all have renovations in the works this year.
The Brunswick Executive Airport is getting a customs and border control facility, for which Maine DOT is providing $5,770,000. The airport is also getting several upgrades to its runways and taxiways in the coming years.
The Knox County Regional Airport in Owls Head is getting safety and infrastructure improvements totaling $1.5 million, and the Wiscasset Municipal Airport will have some changes as well, including a hangar door replacement and a new runway and taxiway.
Jules Walkup is a Report for America corps member. Additional support for this reporting is provided by BDN readers.
