Maine, N.H. join forces to back bus, rail travel

PORTLAND – The transportation departments in Maine and New Hampshire have launched a joint marketing campaign to promote rail and bus service along the Interstate 95 corridor.

The states are spending $100,000 on a 30-second TV commercial and a Web site with schedules for several bus and rail services, including Amtrak’s Downeaster train and Concord Trailways buses.

The advertisement, part of the states’ effort to reduce highway congestion and pollution, shows pleasant scenes of bus and train passengers and says they “arrive refreshed, ready, relaxed.”

Bus and rail travel currently account for about 1 percent of passengers along the I-95 corridor.

John Melrose, Maine’s transportation commissioner, said he believes ridership numbers can easily be doubled.

With traffic on Interstate 95 growing by at least 2 percent annually, even the current widening project will not accommodate continued traffic increases, Melrose said.

Future public transit plans include more bus routes, a Portland-to-Brunswick commuter line scheduled for service in 2003 or 2004, and more Park and Ride lots.

The Maine Turnpike Authority is also providing support for the campaign, the first joint marketing effort by the two states’ transportation departments.