Maine gets $3.2M for Bangor transit center, new buses across state

A total of $3.2 million in federal grants will go to replace 21 public buses in many parts of Maine and help build a new transit center in downtown Bangor.

U.S. Sen. Susan Collins, R-Maine, announced the funding awards from the Department of Transportation’s Grants for Buses and Bus Facilities Program in a news release Wednesday.

The city of Bangor’s Community Connector Public Transit System received $1,286,000 to aid construction of a new multimodal transit hub with improved amenities and accessibility. The Community Connector serves the greater Bangor region, including Brewer, Hampden, Orono, Veazie and Old Town. The current bus depot has not been updated since it was built in 1989.

The Maine Department of Transportation received $1,057,567 to replace 19 transit vehicles that have exceeded their useful lives. As part of an MDOT bus program, the vehicles will be operated by three regional transit providers: Downeast Community Partners, Kennebec Valley Community Action Program, and Waldo County Action Partners. Together, they provide transit services in eight of Maine’s 16 counties.

Biddeford Saco OOB Transit received $880,000 to purchase two trolley buses that will replace obsolete public vehicles. With the new trolley buses, the transit district will be able to improve seasonal service and reduce vehicle emissions, according to the release. Biddeford Saco OOB Transit expanded and restructured its bus services earlier this year.

“Maine faces unique challenges that make transit services both necessary and difficult to maintain, including an older and rural population, a high number of road miles per capita, and high rates of poverty,” Collins said. “This important funding will [increase] access to employment, education, and health care for thousands of Mainers who use bus services.”