Cars weaving around on unlined roads, unintentionally getting stuck in unmarked turning lanes and driving through faded crosswalks have become a way of life in Bangor.
“I honk at people a lot, even though Mainers don’t like it,” local resident Megan Buhl said, citing the eroded lane markings that have created hazardous conditions in recent months.
Even experienced local drivers are struggling to navigate Bangor’s roads, and temporary markers laid out this spring only created more confusion about when the lines would be repainted. While the lines are repainted every year after snow plows scrape up the paint and layers of salt turn the lines white, this year that work has been delayed.
The city of Bangor is painting 270 miles of road this year, but less than 20 percent of that work is done, Director of Public Works Aaron Huotari said. The city’s goal was to have 80 percent done by July 1.
The spray painted markings done throughout the city this spring were meant to guide the crews that paint the permanent lines, Huotari said. The delay means those lines have already faded on some of Bangor’s busiest roads.
Bangor is painting 270 miles of road to help drivers, who have complained of faded road lines. That would take you from Kittery to Island Falls on Interstate 95.
More roads need to be marked soon, even if it’s just with the temporary reflective markers to help people navigate, Buhl said.
“I know it’s a lot of work for the city, but it will probably prevent issues,” she said.
As frustrating as it is for locals, the situation is even more dire for people visiting Bangor, tourist Jenny Rasmussen said.
“I don’t always know where the lanes end,” said Rasmussen, who is visiting from Minnesota with her family.
The city is facing hurdles including staffing shortages, bad weather, and even a striping truck that rolled over, Huotari said.
“I understand the frustration,” he added. “We have so many visitors in the summer who just don’t know where they’re supposed to be.”
Bangor is painting 16 miles worth of dotted road lines, as part of an effort to improve driver experiences. Sixteen miles will take you from exit 183 to the Alton/Bennoch Road exit 199.
The city hired a new contractor to paint the road lines, and the goal is to have lines that will last through the winter, Huotari said. The plan is to complete the road striping and stenciling downtown first, and then work outward from there.
Included in the painting are 6,913 crosswalk squares, 1,496 arrows, 338 “ONLY” signs, 83 miles of double yellow lines and 16 miles of dotted lines.
Moving forward, the city plans to make changes to its paving program to complete the work earlier in the year, which will mean the painting can be done sooner as well.
“We would ask residents to be patient while we revamp the striping and stenciling programs so that we do start seeing, number one, lines that last longer,” Huotari said.
A new type of marking, where the pavement is ground down and paint is then laid into the groves, was installed along Central Street in downtown. Crosswalks in that area will also be part of the trial.
The hope is that having inlaid paint means snow plows will be less likely to damage the markings.
