Cleaner Transportation

What’s At Stake

Transitioning to a clean transportation system is all about creating opportunity and increasing choices. 

NRCM has been working to expand choices for Mainers and reduce transportation pollution, which in turn will make it safer, cleaner, more accessible, and less expensive for people to get around.

Our current system of moving people and goods around the state is expensive, dangerous, and polluting. This problem isn’t unique to Maine, but it is particularly acute in a rural state such as ours that has historically overinvested in car infrastructure while underinvesting in public, active, and community transportation options.

Transportation is by far the most polluting sector in our state, accounting for nearly half of Maine’s annual greenhouse gas emissions. Reducing transportation emissions is “Plan A” in Maine’s climate action plan, but car traffic and associated pollution continue to increase year over year, tragically correlated with an uptick in crashes and deaths on our streets.

Expanding Access to Zero-Emission Cars and Trucks

Zero-emission cars and trucks are a proven technology. We believe everyone should have the opportunity to chose an electric vehicle if they think it will work best for them.

Electric cars and trucks have many benefits for Maine people:

• They are far more efficient than gas-powered combustion engine vehicles.
• They cost less to maintain and operate.
• They offer a better driving experience.
• They reduce health impacts associated with tailpipe air pollution
• They contribute to the flexible, clean electric grid of the future.

Every few years, NRCM surveys electric vehicle owners in Maine to learn about their experience. From that survey we know that Mainers with zero-emission cars and trucks have had an overwhelmingly positive experience, citing affordability (don’t have to pay for gas!), ease of maintenance, reliability, and a quiet and fun driving experience.

As our electric grid continues to get cleaner with clean renewable energy replacing fossil fuels, the environmental advantages of EVs will continue to grow.

Statewide Electric Vehicle Charging

Most zero-emission vehicle owners find it easiest to charge their car or truck at home. Efficiency Maine and the Maine Department of Transportation are building a statewide network of public charging stations for electric car owners to use when they’re traveling.

Visit Efficiency Maine’s website to learn more about where to find public chargers.

Safer, Affordable Opportunities to Drive Less

Expand Choices, Not Highways. Car-oriented development leads to negative environmental outcomes and perpetuates car dependency, increasing costs for families, contributing to climate change, and failing to meet the needs of all Mainers. An analysis from the Climate and Community Institute found that shifting $1 billion away from highway expansion and toward transit would not only reduce VMT by 1.8 billion and save 24 lives annually, but it would also save more than $188 million in reduced traffic delays and more than $26 million in reduced road maintenance costs every year.

Rather than continuing to prioritize road expansion projects that induce demand and incur hefty road maintenance obligations, Maine should invest in climate-aligned projects that meet the access needs of rural communities while reducing car dependency.

Fully Fund Transit Statewide. Maine’s 16 regional transit providers, plus the Northern New England Passenger Rail Association (NEPRA) and the Maine State Ferry Service, have unique insights into the needs of their respective communities, but are struggling to meet the need for rides due to chronic underinvestment. Maine’s statewide transit system is only meeting 11 percent of the need for rides in Maine, leaving families disconnected, workers stuck at home, and smaller customer bases.

Increasing the state share of transit operating costs is a critical step toward establishing a statewide transit system that meets demonstrated need. 

Reform Transportation Project Selection to Prioritize People, Not Cars. To ensure that Maine prioritizes transportation projects aligned with community needs, including those of rural communities, the Maine Department of Transportation’s (MDOT) project selection process must be transparent and achieve its intended outcomes. 

MDOT should score potential transportation projects using a transparent rubric based on key factors such as how they increase access, improve safety, reduce congestion, contribute to economic development, promote efficient land use, and affect the environment. 

Projects could then be ranked according to the established criteria, determining their priority compared to other projects. This would ensure that projects with the greatest benefit to Maine’s people, economy, and environment are funded first, and that politics is removed from funding decisions.

A Transportation System to Serve the Future

Transitioning to a clean transportation system is a major opportunity to improve Maine’s connectivity while increasing safety for all users, inducing economic growth by investing in quality public transit and appealing walking and biking infrastructure, improving accessibility for people with no or limited access to a vehicle, reducing transportation costs, and minimizing environmental harm.

This vision can be achieved by aligning transportation planning with Maine’s climate goals and shifting project selection criteria to prioritize people’s needs over moving cars and trucks quickly. By reorienting planning and investment toward projects that reduce vehicle miles traveled, such as transit and active transportation, Maine can save money, revitalize local economies, and progress toward established climate goals.