Closure needed in connector-road discussion

Controversy has been raging over the placement of the I-395-Route 9 connector road. This connector is an important piece of the proposed east-west highway that will link Canada to our region.

Over the past 21/2 years, the Holden Town Council and Planning Board thoroughly researched and studied all the options presented by the Public Advisory Committee (PAC), appointed by the Maine Department of Transportation to study this issue. Holden utilized the services of traffic consultant Mike Waugh of Surry Engineering Associates and worked closely with community residents and business owners to determine the best option. Effects on Brewer and Eddington were also seriously considered as part of Holden’s study.

Holden values its neighbors and has made every effort to minimize adverse impacts to all towns involved, while still attempting to meet MDOT specifications and design a workable solution within the given study area. As a result of these efforts, the “corporate boundary route” was presented to MDOT at the September 2002 PAC meeting. Holden’s version of the route kept the option located on the Holden side of the Holden-Brewer town line. MDOT presented a map with a new option, 2C-1/2B-1, at the Nov. 20, 2002 PAC meeting. This option loosely followed Holden’s corporate boundary route with some changes the MDOT felt were necessary to fit its design criteria. This option comes off the end of I-395 and roughly follows the Holden-Brewer town line almost to Route 9, where it turns and parallels Route 9 as it continues to Clifton.

Also at the Nov. 20, 2002 PAC meeting, option 4B (which bypasses Routes 1A and 46) was eliminated from this study for the following reasons: It would be the most expensive route to construct and one of the most physically intrusive routes. It is less effective than other alternatives retained for further consideration satisfying the study purposes. It would have substantial operational impacts to Boy Scout Camp Roosevelt. At the Jan. 15 PAC meeting, a modified version of the 4B route was introduced, then dismissed again for the same reasons as the originally rejected 4B option.

Option 2C-1/2B-1 offers many benefits to our area. It would improve the traffic flow and safety on North Main Street in Brewer, and reduce the trailer truck traffic considerably. This also would help ease the congestion in downtown Brewer. It offers the potential for a future spur to Route 178, which, when built, would further reduce truck traffic on North Main Street and downtown Brewer.

An additional benefit would be less traffic at the Route 178-Route 9 intersection, historically one of the state’s worst crash intersections. It is staggering to realize that currently 5,032 vehicles travel this route each day, 305 of which are trucks. Projections show this number is due to increase by an additional 200 truck trips per day by the summer of 2004.

A bypass onto 2C-1/2B-1 would keep the increased volume off the already extremely congested North Main Street in Brewer. This spur would also allow residents of Eddington, Milford and Old Town access to the connector to travel to Wilson Street and on to points east on Route 1A, as well as south to Bucksport and west to Bangor, without impacting the city streets of Brewer. It reduces the traffic flow and improves safety on Route 1A by removing an estimated 7,000 vehicles per day, a 29 percent reduction during summer months. These statistics are from the MDOT, which we believe are conservative. The new construction project in Augusta to bypass vehicles directly to the Acadia region will have an even greater impact on the reduction of traffic on Route 1A.

Improved safety on Route 1A is a not just a Holden issue, but a regional issue that affects anyone who travels this route. It reduces the traffic flow and improves safety on Route 9. It could potentially have an extremely positive economic impact on Brewer, especially the Wilson Street area because it will be the first exit for retailing traffic coming from eastern Maine and Canada via Route 9. It minimizes unnecessary spending and higher taxes, the rejected 4B option would cost $80 million more than any other alternatives studied in the last year. It affects smaller pockets of residential areas than other routes. The unfortunate reality of this highway project is that no matter where it is built, there will be families impacted.

It addresses all four “high-crash” sites identified as part of this study. These sites are the intersection of Route 46 and Route 9, a section of Route 46 from the Mann Hill Road to the Holden-Eddington town line, the intersection of Route 9 and Route 178, and the intersection of Route 1A and the Copeland Hill Road.

The only other option remaining in the study is 2C-1, which comes off I-395 and follows the Holden-Brewer town line, then veers east through Clewleyville Corners, parallels Levenseller Road, then turns north crossing Levenseller Road and runs along Route 9 on to Clifton. This option violates Holden’s comprehensive plan and would physically cut off a portion of the town.

A variation of this route was removed from the study over a year ago because, of all the east-west options under review, this was the most physically invasive, with a particularly high impact to residences. This option would offer no potential relief of trailer truck traffic on North Main Street, nor would it address the safety issues at the Route 178-Route 9 intersections. In contrast, 2C-1/2B-1 addresses these issues and more, making it a better option for all involved.

The three-year anniversary of this project is fast approaching. It is time for closure. It is time to choose the route that best suits the towns of Holden, Brewer and Eddington. After objectively reviewing all the facts, the only conclusion that can be drawn is that option 2B-1/2C-1 is the best choice.

Susan Dawes, Jacqueline Smallwood and Debbie Schmidt are residents of Holden.