(Maine Public Broadcasting Network)
Owners of the rail line from Millinocket to Madawaska say they want to sell, or abandon, the 241 miles of track.
Some Maine truckers say that any plan for the state to buy the former Bangor and Aroostook rail line from Millinocket to Madawaska would amount to an unfair government subsidy. Larry Sidelinger, owner and operator of Yankee Pride Transport in Damariscotta, says its time to stop subsidizing the unprofitable rail industry
“Trucks put many more people to work than trains do,” Sidelinger says. “Let’s let free competition and capitalism flourish and let the chips fall where they may. If the railroads can’t survive, they can’t survive, but they’re the ones that are running the dinosaurs, not us.”
The owners of the 241 miles of track have filed notice with federal regulators that the line is unprofitable, and could be abandoned. A group of legislators from northern Maine has vowed to seek a bond issue or some other solution to save the tracks, which they say are crucial to the future economy of northern Maine.