In what was termed as the beginning of a discussion, Gerry Audibert of the Maine Dept. of Transportation (DOT) addressed the Wiscasset Board of Selectmen on the possibility of using uniformed police officers to direct downtown traffic this summer.
The presentation came during a regular meeting of the board May 17 and was not meant, said Audibert, to be an alternative to a bypass. In his presentation, Audibert introduced a mock schedule for both one uniformed officer and two that would be in place from Memorial Day weekend through Oct. 16.
The total cost for the recommended two officers would be $14,340, which includes a $7170 contribution from DOT, $2000 from Westport Island resident E. Davies Allan and $5170 from the town of Wiscasset.
“I know like most municipalities it comes down to money,” said Audibert. “We have proposed to share the cost equally with the town.”
Wiscasset Police Lt. John Allen, in comments to the board, said he felt last summer was a “banner year” for traffic but it “seemed to move.”
“Having done the traffic control in the past the only thing it seemed to help was the pedestrian traffic and cars coming off side streets,” said Allen. “It didn’t help Rt. 1 traffic at all. In fact it was a hindrance.”
Allen also expressed concern over how two officers, stationed at separate points in the downtown, would coordinate traffic flow. As an alternative he suggested using the prospective funds for parking enforcement, a larger problem he said in the summer. In addition, Allen said traffic cops were constantly getting yelled at and occasionally spit on.
“You can’t have an 18-year-old do this. It needs to be a trained officer,” said Allen. “Unfortunately this is a really short window we’re working with. How can we hire someone to be a police officer for a few months?”
Board Chairman David Nichols suggested any traffic officer should have “arresting power” and be able to enforce existing pedestrian laws such as jaywalking. Selectman Bob Blagden was reluctant to implement the program on a full-time basis and suggested conducting a monthly trial in July using existing police staff.
“I guarantee if we do this now, at the end of the summer we’ll have some people saying this worked and others saying it didn’t,” said Blagden. “Then we’ll be right back here having the same argument we’ve had for the last 30 years.”
After Town Manager Laurie Smith requested Nichols to take the temperature of the board, selectmen decided to investigate the issue further for future discussion.
“Regardless of the bypass situation, which is still up in the air, this could be a short term or long term solution. If we do go with the bypass it’ll be at least 10 years in the making,” said Audibert. “The question we’re trying to answer is whether we can make a significant difference using this method. I’m not expecting a huge difference.”
The Wiscasset Board of Selectmen will next meet on Tues., May 31 at 7 p.m.
