Public Law, Chapter 470, Part B, 123rd Legislature, Second Regular Session

Chapter 470 S.P. 634 - L.D. 1790

PART B

Sec. B-1. 23 MRSA §73, sub-§6 is enacted to read:

6. Capital goals and reporting. To provide a capital transportation program that is geographically balanced and that addresses urban and rural needs, the department shall include the following goals as part of its multimodal transportation capital improvement planning and program delivery. The goals are to:

A. Improve and modernize the interstate system to a good condition or better condition than on July 1, 2007 so as to maintain a free and safe flow of traffic;

B. By 2022, reconstruct those principal and minor arterial highways that are not built to nationally accepted design standards;

C. By 2027, reconstruct those state highway major collectors that are not built to the department's state design standards;

D. Reconstruct state aid minor collector highways in partnership with municipalities, to the extent municipalities elect to undertake such reconstruction pursuant to chapter 19, subchapter 6;

E. By 2027, achieve an even distribution of the service life remaining before the arterial and state highway major collector inventory needs major rehabilitation of drainage or structural features;

F. By 2027, achieve an even distribution of the service life remaining before bridges need major rehabilitation or replacement, excepting extraordinary-cost bridges as determined by the department or low use bridges or redundant bridges as defined in section 562; and

G. Maximize the benefit of capital improvements to freight and passenger transportation users while mitigating, to the extent practicable, energy and environmental impacts.

The department shall report to the joint standing committee of the Legislature having jurisdiction over transportation matters by January 15th of each odd-numbered year quantifying progress realized and time that has elapsed since the goals were established. The department shall recommend any remedial actions, including additional funding or revisions to the goals, that the department determines to be necessary or appropriate.

Sec. B-2. Extraordinary corridor investments for transportation and the economy. The Department of Transportation shall consider the appropriate scope, priorities, schedule for community consensus and funding plans for significant new capacity projects of all modes and extraordinary bridge replacement, removal or rehabilitation projects. Such projects must be considered significant if they are estimated to exceed $10,000,000 in cost. The department shall take into consideration all available funding options including federal funds, bonds, tolling and public-private partnerships. The department shall consider at a minimum partnerships with the Maine Turnpike Authority, the Maine Port Authority and the Northern New England Passenger Rail Authority.

The department shall consider significant new capacity projects of all modes, which must include at least the following: Aroostook North-South Highway; East-West corridor improvements; Gorham connector; I-295 South Portland to Brunswick capacity improvements; I-295 Brunswick to Gardiner rehabilitation; I-95 Bangor capacity and modernization improvements; Lewiston-Auburn I-95 to downtown connector; Portland to Brunswick passenger rail; the Lewiston-Auburn rail corridor; Sanford connector; Wiscasset bypass; and the department's 3-port strategy including the ports of Eastport, Searsport and Portland.

The department also shall consider extraordinary bridge replacement, removal or rehabilitation projects, which must include at least the following: Carlton Bridge in Bath; Route 1 West approach in Bath; Beals Island Bridge in Beals; Knickerbocker Bridge in Boothbay; Frank J. Wood Bridge in Brunswick; Sibley Pond Bridge in Canaan; Aroostook River Bridge in Caribou; Deer Isle-Sedgwick Bridge in Deer Isle; International Bridge in Fort Kent; Turner Center Bridge in Greene; Bailey Island Bridge in Harpswell; Penobscot River Bridge in Howland; Piscataquis River Bridge in Howland; Memorial Bridge in Kittery; Sarah Mildred Long Bridge in Kittery; St. John Border Crossing in Madawaska; Covered Bridge in Norridgewock; Martin’s Point Bridge in Portland; Waldo-Hancock Bridge removal in Prospect; Maine Kennebec Bridge in Richmond; Kennebec River Bridge in Skowhegan; Veterans Memorial Bridge in South Portland; and New Bridge in York.

The department shall submit a report to the Joint Standing Committee on Transportation by January 15, 2008 that includes the department's recommendations as to the appropriate scope, schedule for community consensus, additional study needs, priority and funding plans for significant new capacity projects and extraordinary bridge replacement, removal or rehabilitation projects. Such funding plans must seek to avoid disruption in the achievement of goals set forth in the Maine Revised Statutes, Title 23, section 73, subsection 6.

Public Laws

123rd Legislature

Second Regular Session

Chapter 470

S.P. 634 - L.D. 1790