AUGUSTA, Maine — The Maine Department of Transportation is planning a record $4.7 billion in projects over the next three years, reflecting increased public funding and high costs.
The plan released Thursday is $800 million higher than the one released at this time last year. It will fund nearly 2,700 projects across the state. The largest one is a long-planned $84 million bypass in Presque Isle intended to keep truck traffic out of the city’s downtown. Construction there is slated to begin in 2025 and finish nearly four years later.
Maine has struggled for years with long-term transportation funding issues. While a federal infrastructure bill passed in 2021 and a bipartisan breakthrough last year at the state level have helped, the department said the system is still underfunded by between $100 million and $150 million per year. But it also saw signs of optimism in the recent policy shifts.
“If we set reasonable goals that fit Maine’s needs, manage costs with practical ingenuity, and find the funds needed to match available federal funds, all Maine people can realize the enhanced safety, economic opportunity, and quality of life that comes with a better transportation future,” the plan reads.
The sharp increase in funding shifts Maine’s focus from “making do to making real progress” in improving infrastructure, according to the plan. Nearly half of the money in it comes from various federal programs, while state funding sources make up 37 percent of the money called for. Construction costs rose sharply earlier in the COVID-19 pandemic, challenging state leaders.
That comes after Maine lawmakers agreed with Gov. Janet Mills last year to divert $100 million per year in sales and use tax revenue from the state budget to the separate transportation budget. Republicans led that shift after years of standoffs in Augusta amid disagreements over whether to raise the gas tax or find other ways to raise revenue.
The deal effectively halved a previous estimate that the state was underfunding its system by $200 million or more per year. The state plans to borrow money over the first two years of this plan to cover the new $100 million gap, but that funding is uncertain for the final year.
Other major projects in the plan include $77 million for upgrades on rail lines between Millinocket and Vanceboro, $56 million for a new breakwater, boat launch and wharf in Lubec and $46 million for a new interchange between Interstate 95 and Hogan Road in Bangor.
