Mainebiz

24 Fact Book / Doing Business in Maine VO L . X X X I N O. X I X Advocates for change Ruff champions the work of the Bicycle Coalition of Maine, Portland Trails and Portland Gear Hub, which all advocate for greater safety and accessibil- ity for bikers and pedestrians. e Bicycle Coalition of Maine works in all of Maine's 16 counties, hosting events to raise awareness and build community, and it collaborates with the Greater Portland Council of Governments, the Maine Department of Transportation and city officials. e coalition's director, Andrew Zarro, agrees with Ruff that Portland can be dangerous. So far this year there have been 17 recorded crashes with bikes and cars, Zarro notes, 18 with pedestrians and autos. ree pedestrians have been killed on Portland's streets since January. ough an avid cyclist, Zarro ticks off a list of streets he won't ride, including State, High, Park and outer Congress streets; Forest, Washington and Brighton avenues and the Franklin Arterial (Franklin Street), which he describes as "essentially a highway." Jeremiah J. Bartlett, the city's transportation systems engineer, says Portland has roughly 43 miles of bike lanes, "23 miles of which have a striped buffer to pro- vide additional separation between the bike lane, on- street parking and/or motor vehicles. In addition, we have the parking-separated bike lanes on Park Avenue." ere are a few traffic-calming initiatives in the works, along with plans for a new bike lane on York Street between State and High streets, which is proposed to have a seven-inch curb between bik- ers and drivers. e earliest date for that project is sometime in 2027 or 2028. New bike lanes have been approved for Park Avenue and Congress Street between St. John Street and Fore River Parkway, but the $22 million in funding was recently eliminated by Congress, Bartlett says. ere are proposals for fully separated bike lanes as part of the Franklin Street redevelopment project and to link the peninsula to the new Roux Institute campus. Both projects require funding. ere are close to 100 miles of trails through- out Greater Portland, though for commuters, those routes add time and miles. A trial bike share program is in its fourth year in Portland, but Zarro says, "that's mainly for tourists." Some commuters use the bus system Greater Portland Metro runs buses around the city, up to Falmouth and over to South Portland, and the Metro Breez line takes passengers to Yarmouth, Freeport and Brunswick. One fan of the city bus system who lives in town tells Mainebiz she finds the buses to be clean, safe and reliable, with friendly drivers, though she uses it only occasionally, preferring to walk or bike for exercise. L. Garcia says she buses to ompson's Point — to save the parking fee — and to restaurants and venues in nasty weather, but does find the schedule to be somewhat limited. More riders could encourage the city to increase routes and schedules, but if people find it inconvenient, ridership won't grow. "It's a chicken and egg situation," she says. "I've taken it once to the airport but I had to walk pretty far to the airport entrance which wouldn't work on a bad weather day or if I had kids in tow, lots of lug- gage or mobility issues." Zarro adds, "e city understands that it needs to act. Portland can become a bike-friendly and pedestrian-friendly city one day, but we have a lot of work to do." T i n a F i s c h e r , M a i n e b i z s t a f f w r i t e r , c a n b e r e a c h e d a t t f i s c h e r @ m a i n e b i z . b i z Cyber Security Solutions for Higher Education, Defense, Finance, Healthcare and Government Innovative | Effective | Sustainable Deer-Brook.com Info@Deer-Brook.com 207-387-0396 Deer Brook Consulting is a Maine-based, veteran-owned firm founded in 2013. We deliver enterprise-grade cybersecurity, compliance, and IT advisory services to small and mid-sized organizations across sectors including higher education, defense, finance, healthcare, and government. Whether you need CMMC/DFARS compliance, vulnerability assessments, or fractional CISO support, our expert team provides tailored, sustainable solutions designed to protect your business and ensure long-term resilience. B U I L D I N G VA L U E T H AT ' S V E R I F I E D We thrive in environments with tight footprints, high compliance, and zero room for error. Our teams show up ready—with the experience, communication, and discipline to deliver. VISIT HEBERTCONSTRUCTION.COM/CONTACT TO GET STARTED. Housing, healthcare, education, and community projects LEED-certified and sustainability- driven construction Known for upfront planning and strong project partnerships » C O N T I N U E D F RO M P R E V I O U S PA G E Andrew Zarro is the executive director of the Bicycle Coalition of Maine. P H O T O / C O U R T E S Y O F A N D R E W Z A R RO

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