Who among us here in Maine has yet to observe the fact that many Mainers are underemployed? Many of Maine’s social problems are directly linked to our economic ills. Our unemployment figures are bad, but they do not fully define the issue; many people gave up being one of the “unemployed/underemployed” years ago and have just fallen from view.
So how to improve this situation? One of the few real strategies for Maine is an east-west highway. As the world economy developed, transportation was the big push of post-war Europe and North America, and now the hot-button push is information and electronic connectivity.
However, Maine never finished the job of the 1950s and 1960s — transportation connectivity. In the end, much of the value of information connectivity still depends for resulting economic flow on transportation connectivity. We can’t send most of our final goods and products via electrons.
Almost all U.S. states have modern highway systems with one or more sets of crossing interstate-type highways; that is, highways in multiple directions. Only four states don’t enjoy that sort of arrangement. One of those states is a series of islands — Hawaii; one has huge distances between population centers — Alaska. One is Maine, while states like Vermont (half our population and one-sixth our land area) have multiple interstates. Maine continues with essentially one interstate highway in a mono direction; no cross connections.
There are now 21 studies on the shelves of Maine state government since 1947 about an east-west highway. They all say it would be good if completed but ask the question “how?”
To build a privately funded or even mostly privately funded highway will require a different type of study than has yet been conducted. One requirement of the needed study is that it be done by an independent group, independent of the potential eventual private investors.
For the state to invest $350,000 in an attempt to avoid $1 to $2 billion in publicly funded construction costs and bring that level of infrastructure investment is one of the best deals we have ever had before us. Given that Maine government has proved unable or unwilling to put us on the modern transportation system, why is it not totally appropriate for government to fund this relatively small investment in hopes of bringing 6,000 times that much money in new investment?
This is not about short-term construction jobs. It is about long-term jobs in many different Maine businesses and industries that become better connected to North America. Those long-term jobs are in all 16 of Maine’s counties.
The shortest highway route from most of Maine to Detroit or Minneapolis and many other U.S. cities does not begin by traveling south to go west; it begins by traveling west. Once out of Maine, the modern highways for that trip exist.
But what about the huge areas of land to be built on? If the completed highway rests on a 300-foot-wide corridor (some U.S. four-lane highways are built into corridors no more than 150 feet wide) across 240 miles of Maine, the land used would be 0.04418 percent of Maine’s total land area; and much of that is already roads.
Oh, the family farm — no person I know is anti-family farm. But the truly small and subsistence farms went away as a prevailing economic system when the era of economic specialization began 200 years ago.
Maine’s current terrible economy should no longer suffer being disconnected from the world around us. Trade is what has built our modern economic systems and income. Anyone want to go back to a $1 per hour minimum wage? Would not the remaining family farms be better served with a better means to ship their products to more markets?
Oh, the pollution? No, any possible water pollution will be looked after by the same regulators we all now know. Water protection is stronger now than any previous time in U.S. history. Regional air pollution will be reduced as east-west traveling cars and trucks stop the 150-mile trip around Maine or wasted trips south to go west. Much less fuel will be burned, thus less air pollution.
If Maine continues to distrust the future, we will not enter that future in any good condition. Some people seem to think life was better before modern advancements, but I don’t want to go back. We have studied for 60 years. How many more of your neighbors or families need to be mired in the current insufficiently productive Maine economy?
Those Mainers who give up often suffer poorer health and some will resort to drugs and other illegal activities. Read the pages of this newspaper. Haven’t we had enough lack of progress?
Rick Bronson lives in Bangor.
This is canned Peter Vigue hype..it has no basis in any factual anaylsys in any DOT study to date on the feasibiity and desireability of an East West Highway. In fact all DOT studies to date concluded just the opposite.
If you care about jobs and economic deeloment for Maine it would be wise to not be a water boy for corporate outsiders and not just follow blindly and repeat what Peter Vigue says..work in your community to build jobs there that grow out of your community’s culture. its resources, its strengths and its opportunities.
Here is the link to the many studies DOT was directed to undertake in 1999 at considerable expense:
1999 DOT Study http://www.maine.gov/mdot/1999eastwesthwystudy/reportlinks.htm
Here are a few important quotes from the work of experts in economic and highway lanning retained by DOT
“Construction of a new 4-lane limited access highway between
Calais and Bangor would result in a substantial diversion of traffic off
existing Routes 1 and 9. A new 4-lane alignment .. would remove nearly all of
the existing traffic off of Route 9, as well as cut projected future traffic on
Route 1 by roughly 2,300 vehicles per day below current levels. These projects
indicate that a new four lane alignment east of Bangor could cause significant
bypass effects of Route 1 commercial activity in the coastal communities
between Bangor and Calais.”
“By 2030, more than 60% of total {travel time} savings
generated by {the four lane option} are pojected to benefit
external-to-external users of that corridor, rather than Maine industries.”
“By 2030, more than 60% of total {travel time} savings
generated by {the four lane option} are pojected to benefit
external-to-external users of that corridor, rather than Maine industries.”
“Among impediments to increased Canada trade faced by Maine
companies, transportation issues rank lower than economic and regulatory
issues.”
“Maine’s larger export sectors, including agricultural,
paper, and wood products industries, are areas where Canada enjoys strong trade
surpluses with the US. Due in part to this factor, Maine has a large trade
deficit with Canada.”
“The development a new 4-lane limited access highway will be
subject to many considerations. The economic and social effect of bypassing
communities and potential impacts on the natural and man-made environment are
but a few of these considerations. The study has identified a number of
potential significant resources of concern along the five conceptual corridors.
These resources must be considered for total avoidance.”
Read the rest for yourself..Peter Vigue’s meme about economic benfits for Maine and opening the gateways to trade are just myth not supported by study of hard facts and hard realities.
Read the rest for yourself..Peter Vigue’s meme about economic benfits for Maine and opening the gateways to trade are just myth not supported by study of hard facts and hard realities.
“In fact all DOT studies to date concluded just the opposite.”
Where do we see these facts?
Well in all the costly studies the 118th legislature focrced us to spend..see links above and read for yourself. a few key quotes above.
Here’s what it amounts to on ecnomic impacts and benefits.
Peter Vigue’s power point show shows all these huge arrows pointing right at either end of this road way and claiming to make Maine a major trade gateway if only we wil build this road. As the economic studies done last time show, and there are no chnages in their basic findings, there are no benefits to maine industries from this road and it willnot at all chnage the trade imabalalnce beyween Canada and Maine bevause our economy is natural resource ased and they have the same natural resources we do. In gentle but clear language the report suggests the 100% by pass will be devaastating to communities and settlements already along route 2 and 9.
What this road is all about is giving a private corporation the public power of eminent domain and public bond money at interest rates far lower than any private resources to build a big private piggy bank for private investors who can raise tolls whenever they want to keep their profits at specified levels. It’s about Canadian traffic to move Canadian food from onne part of Canada to another . It’s about the developer operator having a no bid 2 billion highway job free of union wage and other contraints and having a guranteed no bid no competition $2.3 million annually in highway mainetence on which there is a guaranteed profit.
That is how highway privatization works..that’s what its all about.
We still don’t have authroity for privatization..that is something that hopefully will be not merely legislative but by referendum so that all Mainers fully understannd exactly what they are getting into with highway privataization and what it means for highway users.
This is a Road to Nowhere From Somewhere to be determined later!
Are you worried that LePage and Maine DOT is going to take your land for this much needed project.
Rick we know each other and I consider us to be friends. I also think you did a great job when you were employed by The City of Brewer. Like you I also think the East-West Highway is a great idea. I like it even more that it will be built by private enterprise. What I do not like is spending public money for a financial feasibility study. If , as we apparently all agree, this is such a great idea then it would seem that $300,000 would be a drop in the bucket for a project slated to cost over a Billion Dollars. As the tea party republicans have been telling us for the past two legislative sessions “WE ARE BROKE”. If that is true and we all know that tea party republicans would never tell a lie, then where is the money for this coming from? Is the tea party lying to us and we are flush with cash? If private enterprise wants to build this highway and I hope they do, then they should be the ones footing the bill and not the broke (or maybe not broke) tax payers of the State of Maine.
Didn’t you read about the admendment that was passed last week that if this road does get built then the money is paid back. So let’s wait to see where this study ends up it could change the route a little bit it could bring it a little further south then north to Coburn Gore to Sherbooke, Canada. They could also add a connector road connecting it to Central Maine , making it easier to get to that part of Maine. But lets wait for the study I think we all know this road is the closest to it ever happening which eventually it’s going to happen in the next few years.
This highway should be built. It should be built by the Federal Government and if neccessary make it a toll road.
Nothing against Chiambro or anyother private enterprise.
This highway should benefit all Maine and US citizens.
…but what about the previous studies which decided this road was a net loser for taxpayers. If this study goes the “wrong way” will we pay for yet another study in 18 months?
There is also the problem that the road’s terminus at Coburn Gore is a virtual dead end. The connecting road on the Canadian side is a cow path. How about we try something new and let Canada build the first leg of this road (on their side).
Harry take a trip to Saint John via the new bridge in Calais. I beleive that the Canadians have been doing just exactly that. I would bet that if we started to build the east-west highway to Coburn Gore, Canada would have their connector up and half wore out by the time we get ours done.
I said FIRST before we spend the money! I would be more willing to bet a road would be constructed and our money would be repayed if the road started and ended somewhere.
Harry, You are right that the upgrade of the Coburn Gore Crossing is a necessary part of the East West Highway and a separte public expense that is not factored in to the feasibility study.
I think we all need to unite around your standard that any investment in an East West Toll road be DEMONSTRATED long term benefits to Maine and Mainers whether it is private or public.
In that sense we are spending our $300,000 on the wrong end of the business…We should be asking for our $300,000 what improvements of the East West Corridor best serve Maine and Mainers?
See the link to the previous DOT studies above..the road was not economically feasible. It might become economically feasible as a canada connector for trucks who might choose to use it at extraordinarily high rates (over $1.00 per mile) and at configurations with minimum exists , both of which by pass and displace local Maine uses and benefits.
So our investment of $300,000 of public money will show that this private tollway ( which must allow for profit mind you) will only be marginally feasible at rates and configurations which are least advantageous to Mainers.
We should also immediately request a copy of the RFP being issued with our $300,000. I guarantee you it will include a huge block of public money ( Via a federal bond program callede TIFIA that has existed since 1998 specifically for private toll ways) actually given to the “developer/operator” or subordinate to the “devloper operator’s” debt.
If we are going to have a privatized toll road and use these bonds ( which are debt..this is not free money but the operator/vendor would have to repay the debt) don’t we want to begin not with Peter Vigue’s vision for us but with the question “where can we make an investment in our highway infrastructure that will have the highest and best return for Mainers?”
High way infrastructure has benefited just about every place that it has traveled through in this country. It has allowed business owners to set up shop in areas where they didn’t have access unless it was by rail. In areas that weren’t going to tax them to death before they even got started.
I know that if there is no infrastructure improvement to the Calais area, we will continue to see the bleeding of our youth. I believe that back in the 70’s the population of Calais was over 4,000. It has dropped to 2500. It would be even lower except for the increase in Border Patrol and ICE agents since 9/11.
Yes, of course..when the highway infrastructure is actually designed to maximize economic development opportunity. I am sure you are not arguing that nay highway under any design s automaticaly good.
A bad design/bad plan, as this one is, is the same as condemnation for many Maine communities with no corresponding off setting benefit to the people of Maine..again..read what experts..said the last time we paid for an expensive conslutant study on this.
Lindsay,
Interesting comments. Let me point out, your second claim says this is a bad design/bad plan. There is little evidence to suggest that currently this is either, hence the need for a study. As of right now I would categorize this simply as an idea that warrants further investigation.
Consider the notion of accessibility as the central concept of the highway idea. You’d be surprised by the amount of businesses that have considered rural areas in Maine, yet have declined due to lack of infrastructure. The question we face here is, if we build it, will they come?
My best guess is yes. Furthermore, if we can’t meet the basic infrastructure needs of the businesses that already exist (Yes, there are businesses that currently zig-zag across our State to make a east-west run) then why do we bother complaining about the lack of business potential in our state when we can’t support business that is already here.
Last point to conclude, who cares who owns the road. If a $2 billion highway is paid off in tolls in say 20 years, and over that same period the economic growth yield from having the highway is equal to $20 billion, then who is the real winner here? Yes, after that point the private owner will make profit, but not after realizing great economic growth for the region.
I support the East-West highway.
P.S. Rail and Highways tend to work synonymously. While yes, they compete with one another, they also provide opportunity for each other. Rail usually provides the long haul, large volume traffic, while trucks are used for short run, small load distribution. Having a highway presents greater opportunity for trucks and thus opens the doorways and demand for rail growth.
Charles,
First, great appreciation and respect for your very thoughtful and civil reply. If you review the history of this, including the most recent reports manadated at tax payers expense (see the links I provided above)you might receive my comment in adiffernt light. I did a quick extrapolation forward from that last round of studies to focus on the four lane Calais to Coburn Gore option and “plugged in” the few details known about this concept..almost no exits. A very very high toll rate for a aptive user base of Canada to Canada truckers and it seems very clear to me there is nothing baout this road that could doe ay of those wonderful things that infrastructure investment is supposed to generate. Also, see my selected quotes above from these previous studies we the tax payer paid for on this.
If we were focused n the very sensible issues you raise.we would be strating with different questions that most likely would liead to very different choices about the most economically beneficial highway infrastrcucture for Mainers..for maine businesses.. Transportation plannibg was not my forte ( I was mainly in housing and mainly in policy) were about but intuitively as a life long policy anaylsyst policy creator, and a fierce adversary of the kleptcracy, every thing about this current round of the East West Highway is wrong.
I am 100% certain that is is not 100% private financing. It will involve public debt given to the operator/developer or subordinate to that entity’s private debt. The vulnerability of private toll road is always the high cost to users..they are always pushing right up against the choice to not use the toll way. And tolls on private highways go up faster and mre uncontrollably than on public highways. The entire feasibikity of this highway rests on an asumed almost 100% diversion of canadian trucks driving up around Maine now. What if the toll needed to make this 4 lane highwya is too high for even 25% of that traffic after the first few toll hikes?.How doe sour debt get paid off? How can we afford to take over management f this road that has nothing to do with Maine and Mainers.
It definitely matters.
Charles, a pleasure.
We have an “East West” highway from Calais to the New Hampshire line, simple “limited access” route. State Route 9 to Bangor, and I-95 to the New Hampshire border.
Harry that is an east west state of the 1940’s highway to Bangor, east-west to Newport, then south to Mass.
Would rather see Chinbro building roads, than erecting useless windmills in beautiful area’s of Maine.
I also would like to know if your from this part of Maine that would benefit from this project?
Actually my grandfather was superintendent of the mill in Lincoln and I was born in Bangor..I now live in a very remote rural area which, while coastal, has much in common, I think with how the State and southern Maine legislators treat us rural folk.
Here though at BDN and at the other Maine papers I am blogging at what I speak for is good government..for transparency, for clarity, for truth, for bottom up instead of top down planning and economic development, for value added in local communities not in the bank of a big foreign corporation, for what is good for Maiane not what makes the biggest profit for huge out of state corporations or Canada.
What I seek and try to encourage is indepedendent thinking, critical thinking, informed civic action.
So, were these feasibility studies done by a company in ‘Southern’ Maine or the DOT?
See links above. There were two different major consultants..one on the financial feasibility, one on economic impacts. I believe both are Maine companies.
Bringing back the railroads would be cheaper for transporting goods and people and the rail lines already exist. Just need to upgrade. Spend the money for that infrastructure.
They need a complete over hall the tracks are so bad that from Bangor to Portland the track speed is 10 mph . I know the train from waterville to portland dose not have a set time to go they can leave any were between 4 pm an 11pm that means the crew is on call between those time an the train goes 10 mph from waterville to portland is a 8 hr trip for them . Its much faster to send goods by truck than by train plus all the time that the cars spend in the railroad yards it could be up to 12 hrs or more before they are moved to the next point
Railroads are good enough for Irving. If they want a cut across road, let them build it.
Someone else FINALLY understands what is one of the largest reasons America is dying economically.
It is a fact that America’s largest economic boom was when we the interstates where created. They allowed for the faster transportation of goods and created a boom to America’s impact on the world economy. Now we are more of a commercial nation buying WAY more than we produce and that is devastating us economically.
But the thing isn’t just build new projects…. It’s fixing the old ones. Not just interstates, but revitalizing the rail system so it is once again a viable and EXTREMELY economical way to transport large quantities of materials. We need to become economically viable in the world market again or we are doomed. And I for one am ready for what I see as an upcoming civil war. Be it fought on an economic level or worse, it is coming.
America needs to stop buying from companies that outsource all their work to other countries. I don’t CARE if it’s cheaper. It is destroying this economy. But Americans would rather blame our elected officials on everything when they are sitting there buying tons of crap from China, Japan, Taiwan and India. They get cell phones that go to call centers where we have to constantly say to the operator “Huh? I can’t understand you.” You line the pockets of the corporations so they can hire more people in another country. Keep it going and WE will become the slave labor….