Please forgive us for this second email in two days, but we wanted to alert you that the Portland Sustainability and Transportation Committee (part of the City Council) will be considering the trail at their meeting at City Hall TODAY, Wednesday, January 11 at 5:00 pm.
The S+T Committee will be considering whether to support interim trail or rail with trail for the Portland-to-Auburn section of the proposed CBTA.
This might seem like a meaningless distinction, but it actually makes a big difference in terms of the feasibility of the project.
Unlike interim trail, rail with trail would require a setback from the abandoned rail and would add expense, complication, and potential environmental disruption. Plus, the City of Portland has previously agreed that the alternative CSX line (picture in blue in the map below) makes more sense for future passenger rail than the
proposed CBTA corridor (in dotted green).
Interim trail is more realistic for this corridor — leading to a beautiful trail that supports active transportation. And an interim trail already protects rail because it preserves the corridor for future rail use.
If there's any chance you are available at 5:00 TODAY, please consider showing up for this meeting and supporting interim trail! Or if you can’t make it, write a short (even just one-sentence) comment to:
sustainabi...@portlandmaine.govThank you!
---------- Forwarded message ---------
From:
Casco Bay Trail <cascob...@gmail.com>Date: Tue, Jan 10, 2023 at 3:43 PM
Subject: Please Write to the Public Officials in Your Community
To: Casco Bay Trail <
cascob...@gmail.com>
Prioritizing the two rail corridors between Portland and Lewiston-Auburn
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Please Write to the Public Officials in Your Community
As a fan of the Casco Bay Trail, you obviously love trails. But we're willing to bet you like trains too. So do we. What does this have to do with the Casco Bay Trail? Take a peak at this map and read on. 
Amtrak and CSX collaborate to provide both freight and passenger train service between Massachusetts and Maine on the navy blue CSX-owned train line.
South of Portland, the old Eastern Railroad corridor (solid green) is no longer used by trains and has been repurposed as a rail trail. By prioritizing corridors, we were able to accomplish both public purposes, trains and trails. The same could be done north of Portland.
Prioritizing Corridors versus "Rail with Trail"
The royal blue corridors at the top of the map are actively used by trains, and could accommodate expanded freight and/or passenger services between Boston, Portland, Lewiston-Auburn, Waterville, Bangor, and Montreal.
The dotted green line is no longer used by trains. Because it covers the same geography as the still-active train corridors, we propose prioritizing it as a rail trail -- the centerpiece of the Casco Bay Trail loop.
Since there is no impending train use on the eastern (dotted green) corridor in any of the state or regional long-range transportation plans, the Casco Bay Trail Alliance strongly recommends prioritizing corridors, rather than imposing the additional costs, engineering challenges, and environmental complications of "rail with trail."
Please Write to the Public Officials in Your Community
Please send a short note to the public officials in your community, expressing your support for prioritizing corridors rather than advancing a more costly and environmentally problematic "rail with trail" approach.
Portland City Council (cou...@portlandmaine.gov)
Falmouth Town Council
Cumberland Town Council (townc...@cumberlandmaine.com)
Yarmouth Town Council
North Yarmouth Select Board
Pownal Select Board (selec...@pownalmaine.org)
New Gloucester Select Board
Auburn City Council
Thank you for your continuing support!
The Casco Bay Trail Team
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