(The Maine Governor’s office issued the following on August 17.)
PORTLAND, Maine — Maine Governor John E. Baldacci joined officials today at the Amtrak station for a ceremony celebrating the expansion of the Downeaster passenger rail service. Starting today, Amtrak will offer five daily trips from Portland to Boston.
“The Downeaster is a great success story, and I’m pleased that the State, through the Maine Department of Transportation, contributed $5 million in funding to the rail infrastructure improvements necessary to launch the round trip,” said Governor Baldacci. “Ridership is up. Revenue is up. Today there are even more options for Mainers, business people and tourists alike to travel safely, conveniently, and affordably in the region.”
The Governor said expanding transportation is vital to building Maine’s economic future. Area businesses benefit from the increased ridership. The Downeaster is responsible for bringing in to Portland at least $16 million a year in tourism.
Rail also benefits the environment by taking cars off the road and reducing congestion. The Downeaster already has carried more than 1.6 million passengers since the start of service, removing 800,000 passenger cars from Maine highways. Adding the fifth round trip is projected to eliminate another 30,000 cars from Maine roads.
“I am pleased that the citizens of Maine recognize that transportation is critical,” said Governor Baldacci. “This year we passed the largest bonding package for transportation in Maine’s history.”
Maine Department of Transportation capital investments in rail include:
A new maintenance facility to support growth of the Downeaster service;
Preliminary engineering work and regulatory work on the future passenger rail corridors from Portland to Brunswick;
Connecting the Rockland Branch to the regional system; and
Connecting Portland to Auburn, facilitating future commuter service between the state’s two largest metropolitan areas.