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Lakes Region Bus May Fall Victim to High Fuel Prices

July 08, 2008 - PORTLAND -- Soaring fuel prices and lack of local financial support are dimming prospects for a bus service to connect the Lakes Region and Portland.

The price of fuel has significantly pushed up estimated operating costs for the Lakes Region Transit Service since they were calculated late last year. The estimated hourly cost has jumped from $75 to about $90, or from $171,000 to $205,200 annually.

So far, towns have agreed to contribute about $29,000, but the effort needs to raise $85,000 locally, according to David Willauer, planning director of the Greater Portland Council of Governments, which is doing the research and planning for the towns.

The bar for meeting operating costs has been raised even as towns are facing tight finances themselves. “It’s been a tough year for municipalities,” Willauer said.

The glum outlook for the service comes as skyrocketing gas prices are increasing demand for public transportation around Maine. Ridership is up on the Zoom Turnpike Express between Biddeford and Portland, the Amtrak Downeaster and GO MAINE, the state’s carpool and vanpool program.

The Maine Department of Transportation has seen increased interest in transit options since the price of gas reached the $3 mark, according to Barbara Donovan, the department’s manager of transportation programming. The interest in options such as vanpools and connections to intercity buses has surged further as the price surpassed $4, she said. Donovan said the local funding phase is a typical place for projects to stall.

“It’s a real Catch-22,” she said. “It’s difficult for municipalities to come up with that kind of money when their own budgets are increasing because of the rising cost of gas.”

In January 2007, some members of the Lakes Region Transportation Coalition asked the Greater Portland Council of Governments to research and plan the bus service as an alternative to infrastructure improvements for Route 302, Willauer said. The coalition is made up of municipal officials and other interested parties, including advocates for senior citizens, business representatives and local transportation programs that would serve as feeders to the bus service.

The precise route and other details haven’t been finalized. Preliminary plans call for four or five round trips on weekdays. Preliminary fare estimates are based on one-way fares between $3 and $5 and monthly passes between $30 and $40, depending on the distance of the passenger’s ride.

In November, municipal managers agreed with a concept plan that called for local communities to provide $50,000 to match federal funds. Eight towns along the route would contribute between $2,072 and $13,340, depending on the population, for a total of $45,000. Four nearby towns would contribute between $434 and $2,809 for the remaining $5,000.

Because operating costs are now higher, another $35,000 needs to be raised locally to fill the gap. Willauer said the project may approach large employers to make up some of the difference.

The local money would provide access to $100,000 in federal funds and fares are projected to bring in another $22,400 for operating expenses. A separate $49,500 federal grant would pay for free passes for the elderly and disabled and expenses such as bus shelters and signs.

So far, Bridgton, Gray, Harrison and Naples are expected to contribute. The Windham Economic Development Corp. will contribute if the Town Council approves, said Keith Luke, the town’s economic development director.

He said the service would help major employers in the Lakes Region access employee pools in Portland and vice versa while relieving Route 302 congestion. “Every person that’s riding that bus is a person who’s not making a trip up or down 302,” he said.

Standish officials liked what they heard about the project but want to know more about the direct benefit to the town, said Town Manager Gordon Billington. Standish wasn’t originally on the route, but Billington believes councilors would be willing to contribute if it was.

Tim Prince, vice president of planning for Mercy, said the organization wants to help alleviate fuel costs for its patients and 1,800 employees at its Portland hospital and other locations. But he wants more details, like the timing of the runs, before knowing whether Mercy would contribute.

By ANN S. KIM Staff Writer, Portland Press Herald July 7, 2008


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