To the Editor:
The time has come to do something about the bottleneck traffic situation in Wiscasset. It should and could be done now.
With the economy and job loss situation it’s important to make access to areas along the coastal corridor as smooth and stress free as possible. People are coming to relax and forget and we need them to be that way if we expect them to spend their vacation dollars here and not somewhere else.
The other issue is public safety. If you are the one lying on the side of the road waiting for the ambulance to get through to you, or if firefighters and fire trucks have to fight your house fire, they should be able to get there. The solution is really quite simple and not very expensive.
For starters, the State/ DOT needs to use the power of eminent domain to widen the road where necessary in the village area. Eliminate and/or provide for a non-traffic stopping, pedestrian crossing and left hand turning by vehicles that will stop or slow down the flow of traffic.
East and west of Wiscasset, provide a means of reversing direction, such as we see in the Bath area and other towns and cities. Immediately put up signs alerting the driving public to alternative routes for parking and access to parts of the town.
In that same vein of thinking, I would suggest paving along the railroad tracks at the west end of the bridge, headed north, to allow local traffic and traffic for, say, Dresden, Whitefield, Alna, Augusta, etc. to avoid the center of town, thus relieving traffic and perhaps create some parking in that area and on the north side of town. All of this could be done before the heavy traffic season begins.
I feel that just these few changes would not only help the traffic congestion but would be of great benefit financially to a lot of business hidden away off the main drag. More than likely people being directed toward parking would be more inclined to stop and shop on the main street.
I wonder how many people, after crawling along on a hot summer day, can’t wait to get through town and across the bridge, taking their money with them.
The time has come for Wiscasset to help themselves, public safety and the surrounding communities.
Craig Sproul, Southport
