The Maine Turnpike Authority is dropping its controversial Gorham connector project, a proposed four-lane highway that would run from South Portland through Westbrook and Scarborough to Gorham.
Instead, state transportation authorities say they will undertake a comprehensive effort to find ways of easing persistent rush hour traffic in the region.
Turnpike officials spent more than a dozen years and millions of dollars pursuing a five-mile toll road that would connect Portland’s western suburbs to the interstate. Traffic congestion in the area routinely causes backups and spills into residential neighborhoods, creating safety problems.
But growing public opposition to the $330 million project led the Turnpike to pause it last year.
Now all work has stopped while the state conducts fresh research on the issue, said agency spokesperson Erin Courtney. The Turnpike Authority has spent more than $18 million on the project since 2001, including $6.5 million on land purchases.
"We're not doing anything right now to be looking at what those alignments could be," Courtney said. "It is going to rely on whatever comes organically through this process. In a sense, we've abandoned what we were working on. But I don't think it's all for nothing."
The highway plan emerged from a 13-year-old study that found the area needed more road capacity, as well as land use planning and public transportation.
In 2017 lawmakers authorized the turnpike to build a highway.
But housing demand, community growth trends, and commuter patterns have changed since then. Dale Doughty, Maine Department of Transportation Deputy Commissioner, said it is time to update the findings and consider alternatives including mass transit, adjustments to local roads, and active transportation such as cycling.
The study could still determine a toll road operated by the turnpike is needed, he cautioned.
"We’re really looking for a basket of solutions, multiple solutions, bring the whole toolbox to the table and come up with something," Doughty said.
The connector was dealt a major setback last year when Scarborough town councilors voted overwhelmingly to pull support for the roadway.
Town Manager Tom Hall agreed it is time for a reset and to reassess regional traffic movement.
But he said there is daily rush hour gridlock in north Scarborough, a problem that extends throughout the region and is only getting worse.
"It can be terribly frustrating and somewhat defeating that the problems persist and no solutions are in sight," Hall said
Opponents of the Turnpike plan such as Myles Smith with Mainers for Smarter Transportation are cautiously optimistic about the new approach. Smith would like to see the legislature repeal the Turnpike's authority to build the toll road. But updating traffic signals and installing roundabouts on local roads could also make a huge dent in traffic congestion, Smith said.
"We might find that if we do those things, we can make the situation 90% better for 10% of the cost, and do it without destroying the communities around there," he added.
The transportation department plans to include local stakeholders and the public in its research. It hopes to conclude the work in 2026.
