Federal bailout could hamper road projects
State transportation officials yesterday warned city councils in Portland and South Portland that the federal government's multibillion-dollar bailout of Wall Street could put transportation projects in the area on hold for years.
At a meeting to discuss long-term transportation projects in the greater Portland area, Maine Department of Transportation officials said while work that has already received federal funding will continue as planned next year, long-range plans like the proposed commuter rail system between Portland to Brunswick and a reconfiguration of several I-295 exits in greater Portland could be shelved for years, according to the Portland Press Herald.
The Maine Turnpike Authority also said it will postpone by two years a $75 million project to widen the turnpike between Scarborough and Falmouth because monthly traffic counts on the turnpike have been flat or down almost all year compared with 2007, the newspaper reported. The authority now doesn't expect work to begin on the project until at least 2014.
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