The train solution

The haunting, wistful whistle of the Maine Eastern Railroad drifts three miles from the crossing to my house. It’s a pleasant sound, and a reminder that midcoast Mainers are missing a good bet.

Our Department of Transportation – which seems as addicted to the automobile as the rest of us – has proposed spending nearly $90 million on a bypass of traffic-clogged Wiscasset. This is backward thinking and won’t get us out of the dark ages of pollution and traffic jams.

We should be investing millions of dollars in a state-of-the-art passenger and freight rail system. That’s what nearly every other western nation does, and the only excuse we have is that we are hooked on driving a ton of steel around for convenience.

Half of Maine’s air pollution is caused by cars.

Just suppose we set up a commuter train for Bath Iron Works employees, an idea that has been floated before. Just suppose you could hop on the train in Newcastle and ride to Wiscasset, Bath or even Boston.

No bumper-to-bumper jams, no being late and cursing the crowd at Red’s Eats because some of the customers have the nerve to want to cross the street.

At $3 per gallon for gas, many of us could save money by riding a train, and probably get something done, or at least enjoy the scenery, while traveling.

We insist on driving our cars at extreme risk to both ourselves and others, and we often bring out the worst qualities in one another – speeding to get there ahead of the next guy, tailgating, passing on curves, refusing to yield.

This dangerous behavior is highly unlikely to occur on trains, which are much safer, potentially faster, and way less stressful. Besides, trains are sociable and often fun. I have made new friends riding the rails. I’ve read a book, played cards, played music and enjoyed a sit-down meal and didn’t have to worry about having a drink.

In comparison to cars and trucks, trains use far less energy and have far less environmental impact. About the only argument against them is the possible inconvenience of having to travel to and from train stations by some other means. Come on people, we can figure this out.

Other countries depend on trains, as we used to do before the automakers and highway boys ripped up the rails, and as people still do in our cities, where subways are way ahead of buses stuck in traffic. Besides, we all need some exercise. It wouldn’t hurt us to walk a ways.

The state has spent some serious money fixing up the state-owned Brunswick to Rockland rail branch, but for what? All we have is an excursion train, despite renovation of handsome railway stations in Bath and Rockland.

The big hang-up seems to be connecting Brunswick to Portland, even though the track is there. But, hey, the state recently managed to build two expensive new spans across the Kennebec River, and another pricey and perhaps unnecessary one across the Penobscot River. If those hurdles can be overcome for cars and trucks, why can’t we have rail, too?

The answer may be complicated. We are culturally alienated from trains, even though our grandparents depended on them. I can dimly remember my dad boarding the Maine Central in Rockland for New York City. We are politically in bed with the auto industry and road builders, all of whom profit enormously from having us depend on them, and support them through taxes and our obsession with cars as symbols of who we are.

It’s going to be a long fight to bring back sensible transportation. But the battle for the Amtrak Downeaster demonstrates it can be done, and it has proven the critics wrong. It’s extremely popular with the public, and could be more so if fares were reduced and speed increased.

Wait, you mean subsidize rail service? You bet. We already subsidize our roads, bridges and all the emergency vehicles and personnel to patrol them.

That lonesome wail of the train should be heard all up and down the coast, and I’ll gladly park my car and get on board.

Steve Cartwright lives in Waldoboro. He can be reached at writer@midcoast.com.