Rail and trail groups seek compromise

Rails and trails do not preclude each other was the feeling expressed by Department of Transportation (DOT) Commissioner David Cole at a meeting of both railroad and trail supporters held at Machias on February 24. The meeting, requested by Senator Kevin Raye of Perry, was to discuss the best way to preserve the option of returning the rail lines to an 87-mile stretch of track running from Ellsworth to Ayers Junction in Charlotte.

Sally Jacobs of the Sunrise Trail Coalition and others are advocating the removal of the track and the use of the bed as a trail. The trail would be used by hikers, cyclists, all-terrain vehicles and dirt bikes during the summer. Cross-country skiers and snowmobilers would use the trail during the winter months.

The belief of rail supporters is: Don't tear up the rail to save it. Raye said, "I came to the position that the trail does offer economic opportunity, but I want to find a mechanism that will ensure the line will remain a rail line. The picture is very unclear as to the best way to proceed. It is important to bring us all together with the DOT regarding the various issues surrounding the rail."

Raye wanted to know if pulling up the tracks laid down in the early 1900s was needed, or whether the tracks could remain and the bed be covered with gravel to make the trail. "I want to make sure that the rail can come back," stated Raye. There was agreement that the state should retain the track right-of-way. As part of the trail proposal, the DOT will retain the ownership of the rail bed, but the trail will be under the supervision and maintenance of the Department of Conservation.

Jack Sutton, president of a nonprofit group that is working to improve rail service in Maine, believes that once the trail is established it will be a virtual political impossibility to relocate the trail. "So why not put the trail where it can always stay, and leave the rail tracks in place for the day that rail returns?" asked Sutton.

DOT representatives assured those present that the rail corridor would be railbanked, a measure that guarantees a return to rail should a need arise and it is economically feasible. DOT spokesmen said no one knows what transportation needs will be 30 years from now or how they will be met. According to Cole, the bottom line is, since all existing rail, ties and ballast must be replaced before efficient rail freight operation can occur on the Calais Branch rail line, it is easier and cheaper to allow complete salvage of the rail.

Cole, in response to a question concerning restoration of the track, said the track could be repaired or restored incrementally, but it is unlikely that a buyer would be interested in a track that would require expensive rehabilitation and maintenance upon purchase. "You have to put it in some condition so it can succeed. You build it heavy up front and reduce maintenance," remarked Cole.

Nathen Moulton, DOT's manager of rail transportation, says Downeast LNG, a company that proposes to construct a liquefied natural gas (LNG) facility in Robbinston, has contacted him concerning the pipeline along the railroad bed. Moulton says pipelines do run along rail lines and license agreements are worked out for crossings for utility companies and other uses that are compatible with the rail beds. Moulton noted that Downeast LNG did not have any detailed discussions with the DOT.

Moulton also met with Domtar officials who said they did not need the rail track in question for the Woodland mill's use, but everyone is in agreement that the section of track between Ayers Junction and Calais must be retained for possible use by the port of Eastport.
Raye says he asked for the meeting because he believed it would be helpful having supporters of both sides of the issue around the table, so that everyone would hear the same answers. "What I need from the DOT are numbers, reliable numbers," commented Raye. "Costs for incrementally rehabilitating tracks versus full track restoration have varied. I am looking for a genuine comparison of apples to apples. I want to make sure, before we cover over the track or remove it, we are not doing anything to diminish the return of the railroad at a later time. I think that is reasonable and that it should not be that difficult to do. I am interested in getting it right."

Raye further commented, "In order to have my support and a decision on how to approach what we do with the tracks, I want some more information."

Moulton said, "We are working on that." He stated that it is difficult to compare new versus old, noting it is somewhat similar to fixing up an old car versus purchasing a new car.
Cole summed up the DOT's view, saying, "As the DOT, we would like to do it all C have rails and have trails, too, but we have to work with the resources we have and we have limited funding."

On March 2 the legislature's Transportation Committee held a work session on LD 510, An Act Concerning Dismantling of Railroad Track, and the committee came up with a divided committee report. The majority gave an "ought not to pass" recommendation. LD 510, carried over from a previous session, would have amended the law establishing procedures for dismantling railroad track so that it applies to any track, not just state-owned track. The amendment would also have required the DOT to obtain the approval of the legislature's Transportation Committee before dismantling any track. The law presently requires only a review by the committee.

On Thursday evening, March 9, the Maine DOT and the Maine Department of Conservation conducted a public meeting in Machias to discuss management plans for the proposed multi-use trail from Washington Junction to Ayers Junction. A similar meeting was held on March 8 in Ellsworth.