Highways and their Bureacracies are broken

The League of Young Voters sponsored a panel discussion on transportation issues last night, and it was very well attended for such a wonky topic. I'd guess at least 30 people were there, plus a number of journalists.

One of the panelists was East Deering state representative Boyd Marley, whom we're lucky to have representing us as the chair of the Legislature's transportation committee. A lot of questions zeroed in on him, since it's clear that a lot of the funding and design problems we experience in Portland originate at the state level.

As I've argued previously, Maine's Department of Transportation (MDOT) is in the middle of a funding crisis: it can't afford to maintain the infrastructure we have. Yet at the same time, the out-of-touch bureaucracies at MDOT and the independent Maine Turnpike Authority are engaged in planning new highways that will cost hundreds of millions of dollars we don't have, and these agencies have a time-warped internal culture that works in wholesale ignorance of the new realities of global warming and $3/gallon gasoline.

Whether you're an independent trucker in the north woods or a Main Street entrepreneur of the new creative class, Maine's inefficient, stone-age transportation bureaucracies are sandbagging our economic future by failing to acknowledge the new constraints and opportunities of the 21st century. This has got to change - but how?

Boyd referred to the problems of negotiating with rural legislators, who have a strong desire for highways (and strong connections to sand and gravel lobbyists).

But this funding crisis affects rural roads, too. The entire state, rural and urban, needs a solution, and part of that solution should provide alternative, more cost-efficient transportation solutions where they are appropriate. Rural Maine will always demand highways, but if MDOT continues to waste money on expensive and ineffective road expansions in greater Portland when alternatives are both feasible and strongly desired, rural Maine's highways and bridges will continue to be strapped for funding. The status quo is a lose-lose proposition.

The Governor has come up with one promising idea, even if his staff at MDOT and the Turnpike Authority are out-of-touch space cadets: consolidate the Turnpike Authority with MDOT so that there is one unified transportation agency for the state. This idea hasn't gained much traction so far, but it would carry much more political support if it also provided for the transportation alternatives that Mainers want and need. When we consolidate the Turnpike Authority, the Legislature should set aside a dedicated portion of Turnpike toll revenue to fund the DownEaster's operating shortfall and expanded commuter bus and vanpool services throughout the Turnpike corridor.

But Maine's transportation agencies need more than consolidation: they need to be gutted completely and built anew to reflect the new realities of the twenty-first century. Let's give our Legislators the strong grassroots support they need to move forward with a bold, long-term solution. Give them a call or an e-mail:

Senator Dennis Damon, Hancock County, co-chair of the Transportation Committee:
dsdamon {at} panax.com, 667-9629
Rep. Boyd Marley, Portland, co-chair:
abspmarley{at}verizon.net, 838-2450
Sen. Bill Diamond, Windham, member of the Trans. Committee:
diamondhollyd [at] aol.com, 892-8941
Rep. Ann Peoples, Westbrook, member of the Trans. Committee:
annpeoples116 [at] msn.com, 856-7264
Rep. George Hogan Sr., OOB, member of the Trans. Committee:
ghogan [at] gwi.net, 934-4292
Rep. Glenn Cummings, Portland, speaker of the House:
gcforleg at yahoo.com, 287-1300
Rep. Jon Hinck, Portland West End:
repjon.hinck [at]legislature.maine.gov, 874-7407
Rep. Anne Rand, Portland East End:
rndanne at aol.com, 773-8198
Rep. Anne Haskell, Stroudwater and Rosemont:
annehask[at] maine.rr.com, 871-5808
Sen. Ethan Strimling, Portland:
senstrimling [at] mainesenate.org, 775-0105