After years of discussion, studies and surveys, the final segment to extend the Mountain Division Trail from Windham could be added to Maine Department of Transportation’s Three-Year Plan.
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| A $16.2 million project to extend the Mountain Division Trail from Windham to Westbrook has been recommended to be included on the Maine Department of Transportation's Three-Year Plan. The 5-mile stretch would finish a continuous nearly 10-mile off-road bicycle and pedestrian link running from Standish to Westbrook. COURTESY PHOTO |
Aubrey Miller, Senior Transportation Program Manager for the Greater Portland Council of Governments (GPCOG), said that following the Draft Plan’s adoption by the committee, the GPCOG Policy Board will review and consider adopting the Regional Trail Plan on Oct. 23.
The $16.2 million project will extend the Mountain Division Trail from its current end at Main Street (Route 202), in Windham, and extend the trail about 5 miles south to Bridge Street in Westbrook. Doing this will create a continuous, nearly 10-mile off-road bicycle and pedestrian transportation link running from Standish to Westbrook, Miller said.
In 2012, a preliminary design and draft report for the Mountain Division Trail using old railroad beds and tracks was developed and submitted to the MDOT, the City of Westbrook, and Town of Windham for initial review but the project was put on hold because of insufficient funding. The project sat dormant for a decade until in 2022 the Town of Windham applied to the MDOT’s Quality Community Program, seeking funding for the design and construction of the multi-use trail.
A $450,000 grant for engineering and design work for the project was obtained, with a report submitted to the Maine Department of Transportation upon its completion.
Once funded by MaineDOT, project work will include new pavement, gravel, curbing, drainage, signing and striping, retaining walls, fencing, and rectangular rapid flashing beacons located at the trail crossings on Bridge Street in Westbrook, Depot Street in Windham, and Main Street (Route 202) in Windham.
Plan specifics include installing a prefabricated steel pedestrian bridge over Mallison Falls Road with a structural subconsultant hired to complete the design of the bridge. MaineDOT will hire a bridge firm to evaluate the Inkhorn Brook and Colley Wright Brook stone arch culverts and impacts to the project will be further evaluated as trail work progresses.
A final plan version was submitted to MaineDOT in July 2024 and recommended bicycle trail design speeds between 12 to 30 mph, with a speed of 18-mph being generally accepted in relatively flat areas. Because of the adjacent near rail of the railroad track, the plan called for the near edge of the trail to be set back a minimum of 15 feet from the near rail.
Plans also propose introducing vertical curves to minimize drainage and property impacts, as well as to improve the trail construction. It prefers that the trail width be 10 feet although reduced to 8 feet minimum for short distances where a physical barrier or right of way does not allow for the full width of the trail. The proposed shoulder widths in the plan are 3 to 5 feet.
If accepted as part of the Maine Three-Year Plan by MaineDOT, the subgrade and surface of the trail will be graded to drain away from the rail line unless adequate drainage is provided by the trail developer to prevent trail runoff and providing that there are no impediments to normal rail line maintenance.
Equestrian use will be allowed on the proposed trail and snowmobile passage may be accommodated by removing the middle bollard of the trail during winter months.
The proposal includes sidewalk reconstruction along Main Street (Route 202), Bridge Street, Depot Street, Pierce Street, and Stillwater Drive and rectangular rapid flashing beacons to be installed at the mid-block crossing located for Main Street (Route 202) in Windham, Depot Street in Windham and Bridge Street in Westbrook.
In November 2023, voters statewide approved the $30 million Maine Trails Bond and funding for the new multi-use trail could be derived from that bond. Maine Bureau of Parks and Lands will administer $30 million with about $7.5 million per year in competitive grant funding to towns, organizations, and clubs to support the design, maintenance, and construction of trails, prioritizing accessibility and sustainable design standards. The bond provides equal access for all types of trail projects, including for motorized trail use, non-motorized uses, and multi-use trails; and to help leverage other sources of public and private funding to support trail projects in Maine.
The Mountain Division Trail itself follows the former Portland and Ogdensburg Railway. When Maine Central Railroad originally acquired the line, the name was changed to the Mountain Division Rail Line and it was originally built to connect the port of Portland with the St. Lawrence Seaway in Ogdensburg, New York with a spur connecting to Montreal. By the time that its construction was finished, there was more competition, and it became difficult for the railroad to be profitable. Passenger service for the rail line was suspended in 1958 with freight service halted in 1983 and by 1994, all rail service on the former Mountain Division Rail Line in Maine was abandoned.
A public hearing was conducted by the state in May 2021 regarding a feasibility study to replace the existing rail tracks with a paved, multi-use trail. Under federal law, if railroad tracks are removed, the corridor needs to be railbed meaning that it is available to be converted back for railroad use if needed at any point in the future.
The first mile-and-a-half of the proposed trail leading south from South Windham is a flat walking path along an undeveloped rail bed. The remaining 3.5 miles ending on Bridge Street near the Westbrook Community Center is slightly more rugged and contains railroad tracks which would need to be removed to finish the project.
Currently the Standish-to-Windham segment of the Mountain Division Trail runs for 5.6 miles. It starts at the parking lot behind the South Windham Fire Station, and crosses Route 202, where the 10-foot-wide paved trail follows the unused rail tracks for 1.6 miles to a crossing over the Presumpscot River. Just past the Presumpscot River bridge, a side trail heads downhill past Shaw Park and to a bridge just above Gambo Dam. The trail continues west for 3 miles to a gate and then continues up a hill as a gravel path for 1.2 miles to the trailhead at the south shore of Sebago Lake. <
