York Toll Plaza

Maine Turnpike Authority has contracted with Wilbur Smith Associates (WSA) to review HNTB's past proposals for the troublesome York Toll Plaza.  A spokesman said today that the WSA proposal was scored the best and was also the low bid. Another proposer was Jacobs Engineering.

At the Maine Turnpike Authority they hope to file a response to the Feds' questions about the proposed new York Toll Plaza by about mid-April, spokesman Scott Tompkins tells us. Jay Clement of the US Army Corps of Engineers (ACE)  and project manager for federal permitting wrote to the Turnpike May 5 2010 rejecting their Phase 1 screening of alternatives for the controversial toll plaza relocation/rebuild at the Turnpike's busy southern end.

A study commissioned by the town of York in south Maine argues that all-electronic toll (AET) collection is both the most cost-effective and the most environmentally friendly solution to the longstanding dispute over a new 'gateway toll plaza' on the south end of the Maine Turnpike.

Relying on engineers' advice the Maine Turnpike is renewing its 5-year long fight with local residents to get permits for a big new south-end toll plaza comprising open road toll (ORT) lanes down the center and cash toll lanes to the sides (ORT + cash).

Your editor was characterized by Maine Turnpike spokesman Dan Paradee a couple of days ago as "sort of off the wall." We were grateful for Dan's "sort of" qualification there, reflecting no doubt the fact that our professional relations over many years have been cordial and generally productive. He went on however about your editor: "He knows nothing about Maine, nothing about the Maine Turnpike."

Maine Turnpike should ask HNTB for their money back on consulting fees on the York Toll Plaza replacement. HNTB as general engineering consultants have been providing false and misleading advice to Maine on the state of all-electronic tolling (AET).