Portland, ME - New Construction Continued

Corey said:
When it comes to transportation, I'm very much on the side that would argue for less highways. I don't have a strong opinion either way about the East/West Highway proposal, since I literally never go further North than Portland and I don't have a car. I'm a little disappointed that some people may want more highway lanes through Portland. Building more lanes does not simply reduce traffic and it certainly does not make it easier to drive through.
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I don't agree with you Corey. As someone that has a car and does drive through Portland quite frequently.........3 lanes both North and South on 295 would make it easier and most importantly SAFER to drive through Portland. Let's be real here.........I-295 is THE main artery to everything North of Portland excluding the Lewiston/Auburn area and Western Maine lakes/mountains. Most tourists and Maine residents who travel North of Portland use I-295 and 3 lanes should be built in each direction everywhere South of the Route 1 split in Brunswick.
 
Ok, so you add a third lane in each direction in Portland (which I'm not even sure is possible with the space available). You then get a$$hats trying to fly through Portland at 85 mph, because there's suddenly room to do so. That causes the more conservative drivers that are already afraid to be on the highway (but get on it anyway, much to my frustration) to slow down even more to prevent themselves from soiling their diapers.

I don't see how that makes it safer.

I would make the following changes to I-295 to make it safer and easier to use before making it wider:

(1) Lengthen the off-ramps and on-ramps for Forest Ave, providing more room for people to merge on and off the highway;

(2) Improve signage for those on the highway that are unfamiliar with it so that they are more aware of traffic merging on and off the highway given the short approaches (big giant flashing signs, since people don’t look beyond the hoods of their cars anymore);

(3) Get rid of the north-bound on-ramp from Congress Street near Hood (it's redundant) and smooth out the curve on the highway in that section;

(4) Improve signage so that tourists and other idiots not paying attention know they need to exit more than 100 feet before the exit (more big giant flashing signs);

(5) Improve signage to make it absolutely clear which lanes on Tukey's Bridge are through lanes and which are exit lanes (even more big giant flashing signs);

(6) Force non-local truck traffic up I-95 and across the Falmouth Spur/I-495, rather than allowing it to pass through Portland (if companies complain, then lower the toll on the Falmouth Spur/I-495 to shut them up);

(7) Post gun turrets along the northbound stretch in South Portland and along the southbound stretch in Falmouth; anyone with their face planted in their cell phone gets blown off the road.

Traffic problems solved.
 
@mainejeff - Let's be real here. Widening I-295 to 3 lanes through Portland would cost taxpayers hundreds of millions of dollars. And right now, roads and bridges statewide are facing billion-dollar shortfalls just for basic maintenance and upkeep, and gas tax revenues are declining due to more folks (like Corey, and yours truly) opting not to deal with the hassles and expenses of car ownership.

So: are you willing to pay 50 cents more per gallon in taxes at the pump to pay for this highway widening? And if so, can you convince half a million of your fellow motorists to do the same?

Given demographic trends and fiscal imperatives, it's far more likely that I-295 will be downgraded to an at-grade arterial street within the next 15 to 20 years. Doing so would reduce the state's unsustainably high highway spending and also open up dozens of acres of extremely valuable waterfront real estate (currently locked up in government ownership) for lucrative economic development in Portland and Falmouth.
 
I can see that I am dealing with a lot of myopic Portlanders here.:rolleyes:

Guess what guys???......it's not ALL about Portland! I-295 is a Federal highway that serves the entire state...........it's just that the most crowded and dangerous part happens to be in Portland. It's a freeway and it ain't going away......deal with it!
 
SHAZBAT73 said:
First - Corey - For a man with no car, that's a heck of a lot of walking for those awesome pics! Thanks!

Second - The East-West highway, mass transit and other highway issues.

Though I think the East-West highway deserves it's own thread, I will put my two cents in. I'm all for it. I do agree with some that corporations will profit from this, but I also believe that it will create jobs too for the average Mainer. Northern and Central Maine could use the shot in the arm too. As for scenic drives, yeah they're cool. But when you're trying to get from point A to point B to see family or for business ASAP, the scenic drives and the friggin' slow pokes have to take a backseat and step aside!

As for mass transit, I think Portland, LA, Bangor and Biddeford-Saco are perfect places for it. As for other places in Maine, I don't see it happening. Being from the Sanford/Massabesic footprint, I don't see the population supporting it (financially).

As for highways, we are LONG overdue for wider highways! Maine is growing, especially in southern Maine! Rt. 111, Rt. 202, Rt. 109, Rt. 4, Rt. 25, Rt. 302 and a lot of highways in the Biddeford-Portland-Brunswick metro are undersized and usually overwhelmed. On lot of these highways the accident rates are high too, due to congestion. The idea that we keep things the same is ridicules in my mind, and it's because of that philosophy that a lot of us have to suffer for it. Thank you voters, including myself, for the long overdue I-95 widening and the soon to be complete and beefed up Spaulding Turnpike.
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East to west highway seems beyond pointless in my mind. Who will travel it? Are people from bangor going to hop on it and go where? too berlin new hampshire? People from bangor are going to travel to southern maine, there not going to travel the east-west highway to montreal.
The highway will literally go through the middle of nowhere, doing very little if anything for maine, while ruining a very nice part of the state.
I have lived in many other states and there are very few that are as enjoyable as maine. Look at texas with there super highways that go too nowhere, they have done nothing to help the state, other then costs of maintaining the roads.
Yes it will create jobs, alot of temporary jobs but after it will do very little if anything for the economy. The amount it will cost to travel the highway would be quite expensive from what I have heard.

I travel 1-95 and I don't see the need for widening it all. It is a breeze to drive even in heavy traveled times, driving in maine is paradise compared to almost anywhere else.

Yes 302 with the suburban sprawl would greatly benefit with a widening. Out of all the roads I've traveled 302 has the most issues.

Here is a good read about the east-west highway

http://www.google.com/url?sa=t&rct=...7YGoCQ&usg=AFQjCNE4_XdcYodldNm1PhOrqYyX94WRTA
 
Dr. Strangehat - I agree with you on most of your points in your last post, except for the gun turrets (funny though)!

Allagash - Read the article, and a lot of points make sense. I don't agree with the Appalachian Trail argument though. It crosses over and under superhighways all up and down the East coast.

I-95 is easier to travel now than it was. When it was 4 lanes it was just too congested. Getting on and getting around the 18 wheelers were a pain in the backside.
 
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mainejeff said:
I can see that I am dealing with a lot of myopic Portlanders here.:rolleyes:

Guess what guys???......it's not ALL about Portland! I-295 is a Federal highway that serves the entire state...........it's just that the most crowded and dangerous part happens to be in Portland. It's a freeway and it ain't going away......deal with it!
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Ok, just a few points to counter this:

(1) I-295 does not serve the entire state. It directly serves the communities from Scarborough to Gardner. Indirectly, it probably serves about 1/2 the state.

(2) Correct, the most crowded and dangerous part is in Portland. North of the Presumpscot River Bridge and especially north of Brunswick the highway is a breeze and does NOT need to be widened. However, since when is widening the one and only way in which you make a highway safer and easier?

(3) Federal funds will not pay to widen I-295, especially in the face of budget cuts in Washington. There are far busier and more dangerous sections of highway in this country that require more immediate attention compared to than I-295.

I understood and approved of the need to widen I-95 south of Scarborough. I also liked the fact that much of that was paid for using tolls and not taxpayer money. However, I do not see the desperate need widen I-295 through Portland (or I-95 north of Scarborough for that matter), especially since there are no tolls to cover the cost. The traffic volume is simply not high enough compared to other parts of the country, and there are numerous easier and less expensive changes that can be made to make the road safer and less congested.

Plus, just think about what you're saying. Does wider really mean safer? When they want to slow down traffic on city streets, what do they do? They narrow the street, which kicks in a claustrophobic fear in most people to slow down. Widening the highway will not make it “safer”, because a wider road will simply lead to faster moving traffic. Compared to traffic in other metro areas, the traffic here in Portland is already moving along just fine. If it takes you an extra minute or two to get home from work, then so be it. At least you get home vs. being stuck behind an accident caused by some jacka$$ going 30 mph over the speed limit or, worse yet, being involved in an accident caused by some jacka$$ going 30 mph over the speed limit.

mainejeff said:
So you guys are fine with the East/West going from Canada to Canada????
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Absolutely not. I think it’s one of the dumbest ideas ever floated out there by anyone in this state. It will serve very little purpose to Mainers. It will not bring additional business to the state. To all of the claims of economic benefits, I call shenanigans. These are the same people that told you putting a casino in Norway, ME would bring thousands upon thousands of tourists from out of state, millions of dollars in tourist money and new commercial development, and thousands of “good paying, quality” jobs to that area. Two years later the developer of the casino has already jumped ship without so much as even putting pen to paper to draw up some of that assumed and promised additional development. All we have left is a carbon-copy of Cabella’s in Scarborough, except with gaming machines inside instead of hunting gear, and a few more dollars in Bob Marley’s pockets for saying “wicked good fun!” Ever wonder why they're now targeting Mainers in their advertisements instead of tourists?

The only thing this highway will do is provide a quicker route for truck traffic from Canada to Canada. We might get a few extra tax dollars from truck stops along the way, but this isn’t going to be some sort of wonderful nexus that opens up the entire central and northern half of the state to the global economy and development. Nope, we’ll get a highway that 50-100 years from now everyone will regret was even built, because tourists looking to get away from highways are no longer venturing to those areas.
 
Disagree with you about 295........

1. 295 serves most of the state........anyone that doesn't live West of the Turnpike uses 295 because it is a shorter route North and East of Portland. This includes all coastal areas North of Portland to New Brunswick.........as well as all areas North including Augusta, Waterville, Skowhegan, Moosehead, Bangor, Baxter, Aroostook, etc.

2. Widening WILL make it safer and easier to drive. I don't know how anyone can argue against that with a straight face. Driver behavior can't be controlled other than speed limits and enforcement. If you want to keep 295 at 2 lanes through Portland then eliminate all of the on and off ramps.

3. We might actually see MORE Federal projects as they try and put people to work with all that tax money they are sucking from us.


On the East/West......totally agree with you.
 
mainejeff said:
Driver behavior can't be controlled other than speed limits and enforcement.
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I agree, but I also think that where you may not be able to completely control it, you can at least persuade, dissuade or influence it. I think opening up I-295 will lead to more drivers traveling at unsafe speeds through an urban area that cannot support it.

I'm curious to hear how you propose they widen it to three lanes in the stretch from Tukeys' Bridge to the Falmouth line. That would require the taking of property, which is not exactly an easy thing to do these days. Heck, they tried to do it when they built that stretch, and back then the government took land almost at will. You can see the results today - a tight highway that weaves through a neighborhood.

On top of my doubts that it will truly make it a safer highway, I don't like the idea of widening it from an aesthetic perspective. Right now there is a grass median along much of the stretch, which I find aesthetically pleasing. How many freeways passing through an urban setting have a grass median? If you widen the highway to three lanes in each direction, then you lose that median. Because there’s only room to widen by adding lanes to the median vs. to the outside.

So – what do you get after that? You get six full lanes of asphalt, separated only by a large permanent concrete Jersey barrier, making it just as bland and ugly as every other urban freeway in this country.

I'd much rather we keep that median and try some other measures to make the highway safer, rather than start paving every last inch of grass and greenery we have in this town. If those don't work, then widen the highway.
 
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Dr. StrangeHat said:
I agree, but I also think that where you may not be able to completely control it, you can at least persuade, dissuade or influence it. I think opening up I-295 will lead to more drivers traveling at unsafe speeds through an urban area that cannot support it.

I'm curious to hear how you propose they widen it to three lanes in the stretch from Tukeys' Bridge to the Falmouth line. That would require the taking of property, which is not exactly an easy thing to do these days. Heck, they tried to do it when they built that stretch, and back then the government took land almost at will. You can see the results today - a tight highway that weaves through a neighborhood.

On top of my doubts that it will truly make it a safer highway, I don't like the idea of widening it from an aesthetic perspective. Right now there is a grass median along much of the stretch, which I find aesthetically pleasing. How many freeways passing through an urban setting have a grass median? If you widen the highway to three lanes in each direction, then you lose that median. Because there’s only room to widen by adding lanes to the median vs. to the outside.

So – what do you get after that? You get six full lanes of asphalt, separated only by a large permanent concrete Jersey barrier, making it just as bland and ugly as every other urban freeway in this country.

I'd much rather we keep that median and try some other measures to make the highway safer, rather than start paving every last inch of grass and greenery we have in this town. If those don't work, then widen the highway.
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No doubt that they would have to take some property in the tight areas that you mentioned. Didn't a fairly recent Supreme Court ruling favor the government in cases of eminent domain?
 
Dr. StrangeHat said:
As far as the more and wider highways thought is concerned, I'm of the frame of mind that we don't need more or wider highways in this state. That, to me, promotes suburbanism.
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I think what you're saying is, "if we don't build it, they won't come." Except it is clear they are coming anyway. A better highway system in our state would improve not just the lives of Mainers who just want to get from A to B, but also support our number one industry of tourism. I'm sure tourists would rather not be sitting in traffic jams during their vacations, just as I'd rather not be sitting in a traffic jam trying to get to or from family in the Midcoast.

I go to NH and I am envious of the 4-lane part of Route 101. It's just a perfect way to get cars between Hampton and Manchester. In Maine I feel like just about everything is operating beyond capacity. We never plan for the future. We have major roads that snake through every little town that want the speed limit to be 25mph. I don't want to go to every little town; I want to go to point B.

I-295 from Scarborough to Topsham is just ridiculous. Between the Falmouth spur and Brunswick I feel like I am in constant danger. I'm torn on this highway. I agree with Dr. StrangeHat completely on the aesthetics of it in its current state versus as six lanes, but at the same time it is clearly overloaded with cars.
 
Sommarnatt said:
I-295 from Scarborough to Topsham is just ridiculous. Between the Falmouth spur and Brunswick I feel like I am in constant danger. I'm torn on this highway. I agree with Dr. StrangeHat completely on the aesthetics of it in its current state versus as six lanes, but at the same time it is clearly overloaded with cars.
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I disagree with it being overloaded. I rarely feel in danger on the stretch from the Falmouth spur to Brunswick. To me it's relative. I lived in MA for three years until moving back to Maine in 2011. For one of those years I lived in Waltham and commuted to Weston. For the other two I lived in Acton and commuted to Weston. Compared to the commutes I had along Rt. 2 and Rt. 128 in MA, I-295 is a DREAM.

I agree that we should be more forward thinking on our highways, but I don't think Southern Maine will ever be as densely populated as Eastern Massachusetts. We don't need to plan for that level of traffic.

I simply think that there are other ways to make our highways safer and easier to use besides widening them. I'm not completely against widening them, but I'd at least like to see some of those other measures tried first, with widening being the last option.
 
Dr. StrangeHat said:
I disagree with it being overloaded. I rarely feel in danger on the stretch from the Falmouth spur to Brunswick. To me it's relative. I lived in MA for three years until moving back to Maine in 2011. For one of those years I lived in Waltham and commuted to Weston. For the other two I lived in Acton and commuted to Weston. Compared to the commutes I had along Rt. 2 and Rt. 128 in MA, I-295 is a DREAM.

I agree that we should be more forward thinking on our highways, but I don't think Southern Maine will ever be as densely populated as Eastern Massachusetts. We don't need to plan for that level of traffic.

I simply think that there are other ways to make our highways safer and easier to use besides widening them. I'm not completely against widening them, but I'd at least like to see some of those other measures tried first, with widening being the last option.
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*sigh*
 
Could we start a separate thread for I-295/East-West Highway and any other road issues and get back to New Construction related items that do not involve transportation. And for the record, I am for the widening of I-295 to three lanes from the Portland Waterfront exit in South Portland to the Falmouth Bucknam Road exit. There are a few stretches of 3 lanes already (Westbrook St and Tukey's Bridge to Franklin) so we might as well finish the entire 7 mile section. It is probably going to be needed sometime in the distant future due to the continued growth of Greater Portland and the cost to complete the project will obviously continue to escalate.

The only other option I would consider is to keep improving the exit ramps through the Portland peninsula portion and leave I-295 as it is, but add a third lane on the Maine Turnpike through Portland to the Falmouth Spur interchange. I am always amused that the Maine Turnpike shrinks to two lanes at the southern approach to Maine's largest city. Maine DOT's logic was that the third lane through Portland on the turnpike was not needed do to the I-295 option at the Scarborough split. I am not totally sure but I think a few of the bridges have already been widened through Portland to possibly accommodate a future third lane.
 
Foes push to keep lid on project in Bayside
Their newspaper ad pressures city councilors to deny a zoning change allowing taller buildings.
By Randy Billings rbillings@mainetoday.com Staff Writer

First few paragraphs:

PORTLAND – A small group of Greater Portland residents is spending thousands of dollars trying to persuade the City Council to reject a zoning change that would allow as many as four, 14-story towers in Bayside.

Timothy Paradis of Portland and more than a half-dozen other people bought an advertisement in Wednesday's Portland Press Herald opposing a developer's request to build a 165-foot-tall building on a site where the height limit is now 105 feet.
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Did anyone see the ad? I don't read the PPH in paper format. Kind of curious to know how professional it looked. I'm totally fine with the height of the proposals, but this group of opponents does have a good point about being against "superblocks" and pedestrian "dead zones." Seems like the overall good of this project overshadows (pun intended) the bad though. Maybe us Archbostoner's should gather some funds and run our own ad to ask for our own improvements to the project.
 
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