AUGUSTA, Maine - Maine's highway system ranks as the fifth best in the nation, up from 18th five years ago.
That's according the Reason Foundation, which ranks states' systems annually. Maine native David Hartgen, a retired engineering professor at the University of North Carolina, authored the study.
"They moved up for several reasons," he says. "First of all, they have made progress with regard to several items; one is the percentage of deficient bridges. They are still above the national average, but it has come down quite a bit.”
Hartgen says there are some weaknesses in Maine. He says rural roads need better maintenance, and many are still too narrow for today’s traffic. Hartgen says Maine is a poor state without the resources to meet all of its highway and bridge needs.
