Amtrak service north of Portland

Many people have asked when Amtrak service would be extended north of Portland. So far, the answer has been "We just have to wait and see."

There is an article in today's Portland Press Herald on that subject, and it looks like service north of Portland could begin before the end of this decade.

http://pressherald.mainetoday.com/news/ ... rain.shtml

MEC 407, I read that article, and I think that would be a great thing to see. Although it will reqire EXTENSIVE rehab of the trackage from Portland to Brunswick, won't it? I believe most of that trackage is in pretty hard shape, isn't it?

The things they'd be doing on the Portland-Brunswick line are basically the same as what they did on the Plaistow-Portland line: new ties, new rails, ballast, bridge work, drainage work, upgraded signals, upgraded crossing protection, etc. So, yes, it would be extensive work.

I was in Brunswick for two nights this week. With the NAS closing, and the tiny population of Bowdoin College, it doesn't seem like the line would generate many riders.

But wouldn't it stop at Freeport along the way? Lots and lots of people go there to shop.

Which all begs the question, what is the criteria used for determining where this money goes? It certainly isn't annual ridership. It seems to be someones pet project in government and they are going to spend our money no matter what.

I think what we're looking at here is that Freeport is a major destination north of Portland, and if we're gonna spend the money to get from Portland to Freeport, it just makes sense to keep going to Brunswick, and then be able to connect with the Rockland Branch, which takes you to other major tourist destinations such as Wiscasset, Bath, and Rockland. It would be silly to have spent money upgrading the Rockland Branch, and then do an upgrade from Portland to Freeport, but not go a few extra miles and connect the two.

MEC407 wrote:I think what we're looking at here is that Freeport is a major destination north of Portland, and if we're gonna spend the money to get from Portland to Freeport, it just makes sense to keep going to Brunswick, and then be able to connect with the Rockland Branch, which takes you to other major tourist destinations such as Wiscasset, Bath, and Rockland. It would be silly to have spent money upgrading the Rockland Branch, and then do an upgrade from Portland to Freeport, but not go a few extra miles and connect the two.

Talk about hitting the nail on the head.My thoughts exactly.