Courtesy / American Society of Civil Engineers
Maine’s overall infrastructure grade is unchanged from 2016. Roads are among the worst categories, while aviation has seen some improvements.
December 3, 2020
Maine again gets C- on infrastructure 'report card,' but nearly flunks in some areas
File photo/Renee Cordes
Portland's International Marine Terminal is a beehive of activity lately. The state's ports received a B- in an infrastructure report card, the same grade as 2016 but up from 2012’s C+.
By Staff
Although there have been improvements in some areas, an engineering group once again has given Maine’s roads, bridges, ports, utilities and other infrastructure a grade of C-, meaning they're only in mediocre condition.
The Maine Section of the American Society of Civil Engineers on Wednesday released its 2020 Report Card for Maine’s Infrastructure.
In addition to the overall grade of a C-, Maine civil engineers gave marks in 16 categories: aviation (B), bridges (C-), dams (D+), drinking water (C), energy (C+), hazardous waste (D+), levees (C-), parks (C), ports (B-), rail (C+), roads (D), schools (C), solid waste (C-), stormwater (C-), transit (D+) and wastewater (D+).
Maine's grade was also C- in the society’s 2012 and 2016 reports.
Each category was evaluated on the basis of capacity, condition, funding, future need, operation and maintenance, public safety, resilience, and innovation
“We appreciate the work of the engineers who independently reviewed this technical information, even if the grades are not always satisfying,” Bruce Van Note, commissioner of MaineDOT, said in a news release.
“ASCE is a tough grader, but the report card is fair. The dedicated and hardworking men and women at MaineDOT do the best they can with limited resources. We look forward to future discussions about both short- and long-term funding solutions to help us continue to improve the safety, economic opportunity, and quality of life we cherish in Maine.”
Old bridges
Maine’s surface transportation network — which includes bridges (C-), roads (D) and transit (D+) — has lacked the funding mechanisms necessary to make substantial improvements, according to the release.
Maine has the highest fatality rate on its roadways of all New England states at 1.04 per 100 million vehicle miles traveled. According to MaineDOT’s Three-Year Work Plan, the projected annual funding gap for roads and bridges is $233 million, and that was before the COVID-19 pandemic.
Nearly 60% of Maine’s bridges are over 50 years old, surpassing their useful design life, and 13% of the state’s 3,754 bridges are deemed structurally deficient. Most road conditions are in fairly good shape, but 8% of Maine’s highest priority roads have poor or unacceptable ratings in condition and safety and this number is expected to climb due to the annual funding gap.
Multimodal improvements
Improvements in Maine’s multimodal freight transportation network, including the state’s aviation (B), ports (B-) and railroad (C+) infrastructure, have provided greater economic opportunities and efficiencies across the state.
Aviation infrastructure received the highest grade of a B, partly as a result of $121 million in federal Airport Improvement Program funding since 2016 and an additional $731 million in Passenger Facility Charge revenue in the state’s four commercial airports.
However, the nationwide $4.50 per segment cap on the Passenger Facility Charge, in place since 2000, limits how much airports can invest in their own facilities to prepare for future growth.
Increased shipping volume
Maine’s ports have seen increases in shipping volumes in recent years. The International Marine Terminal in Portland alone has seen a 120% increase in the number of containers that have come through its facilities between 2015 and 2019.
To help facilitate the growth, the state’s ports have received over $104 million in state and federal funds over the last 12 years, although an additional $110 million is needed for improving intermodal connections and industrial infrastructure.
Some ports are now connected to the rail system, which provides a valuable link for effectively moving freight without adding traffic to the interstate highway system. To further enhance efficiency through these connections, current investments are being made to ensure all rail mainlines in Maine will be able to support 286,000-pound railcars, the standard with Class I railroads and a major modernization milestone.
“Investments in our airports, marine terminals, and freight network are a perfect examples of how prioritizing infrastructure can lead to increased business opportunities and expanded connectivity within our state and throughout New England,” Dan Bouchard, ASCE Maine Section president, said in the release.
“Our needs will only grow after the impacts of COVID-19 are fully realized, so it is imperative that we prioritize investment in all infrastructure sectors to ensure Mainers’ needs are met.”
Aging water infrastructure
Aging drinking water infrastructure (C) is a serious issue for Maine’s water utilities as they continue to miss the 1% annual replacement rate.
In response, the Maine Rural Water Association, Maine Water Utilities Association and RCAP Solutions are developing standardized metrics that assess operational parameters, including asset management practices and leak detection programs.
Municipal wastewater infrastructure (D+) is also aging, with many treatment facilities being built in the 1970s. However, recent improvements have helped reduce the volume of combined sewage and stormwater discharged from 6.2 billion gallons in 1987 to 0.5 billion gallons in 2018.
Renewables leader
Energy received one of the higher grades in the report, C+.
Maine is a leader in renewable generation, with approximately 75% of the state’s net generation being renewable energy compared to 18% for the U.S. That's largely due to an increase in wind generation and reduction in gas generation, according to the report. Maine has benefited from major investments in its aging transmission and distribution network.
However, Maine’s transmission and distribution network has begun to reach the end of its useful life which, when combined with an increase in severe weather events, is leading to frequent outages statewide. These factors led to the energy grade decrease from a B- in 2016 down to a C+ in 2020.
Recommendations
The report card includes recommendations to raise the grades.
For example, asset management has proven to be a valuable tool for analyzing conditions and prioritizing capital improvements and rehabilitation for several sectors, but many infrastructure agencies in the state have not yet implemented the practice, leaving their networks vulnerable to a pattern of reactionary and oftentimes expensive updates and repairs.
The report recommended that asset management data and strategic long-term planning should be implemented across all infrastructure portfolios. In addition, agency and utility leaders from all sectors need to create consistent, dedicated funding from a variety of sources; investments should be made based on research and development to promote innovation.
"In rural states like ours, unsafe and beat up infrastructure impacts our lives every day,” U.S. Rep. Jared Golden, D-Maine 2nd District, said in the release. “It makes commutes longer, more dangerous, and it damages our vehicles. It makes it harder to get Maine-made products to market, and holds our entire economy back from its full potential. Mainers deserve better."
The report card was created as a public service to citizens and policymakers to inform them of the infrastructure needs in their state. Civil engineers used their expertise and school report card letter grades to condense complicated data into an easy-to-understand analysis of Maine’s infrastructure network.
To see the full report, click here.
In 2019, Maine voters approved a state bond that of $105 million for a variety of road construction projects and other transportation infrastructure improvements.
The bond will also be used to upgrade ports, improve air and rail transportation, repair culverts, and renovate a wharf at the Gulf of Maine Research Institute in Portland for commercial fishing and marine science vessels.
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