SKOWHEGAN —The long-discussed proposal to build a second bridge over the Kennebec River is inching its way forward, although it is still in its early stages even after decades of studies, public meetings and ongoing debate.

And for those looking to chime in about what has sometimes been a controversial project, state transportation officials are planning to present updates at a public information session.

The meeting is scheduled for 6-8 p.m. Nov. 5 at the Skowhegan Public Safety Building at 51 East Madison Road.

The Maine Department of Transportation, which is overseeing the project, is inviting anyone with any interest in it to attend and share their thoughts.

“The Department and their Consultants will present information on the status of the project, design phases, conceptual alternatives, and the upcoming environmental review,” the department said in an announcement. “We are interested in hearing local views on the second crossing alternatives.”

People with questions, comments and other inquiries about the second river crossing project can also contact the project manager, Regional Planner Matthew Drost, via email at [email protected] or via telephone at 207-441-1879.

While multiple locations have been proposed in the decades the project has been discussed and its various iterations of studies, the transportation department has settled on the vicinity of the intersection of North Avenue and Water Street on the north side of the river, effectively connecting U.S. Routes 2 and 201.

The exact location and design, including where the south end of the bridge will be on that side of the river in what is currently a residential neighborhood, are still to be determined.

The current phase of the project “is focused on enhanced scoping and design work before a proposed action is determined,” Drost said in an email. This phase is anticipated to continue into 2026.

With the project still in its early stages, Maine DOT has not determined a ballpark cost estimate, Drost said.

Drost said the project is anticipated to require federal funding and be matched primarily with state funds. He could not guarantee that town funding would not be required; some local requests, such as wider sidewalks or other design enhancements, may need to be funded with local dollars.

Proponents of the second bridge, first considered nearly 30 years ago, have said it would reduce truck traffic through the downtown area and congestion on the Margaret Chase Smith Bridges, which could lead to other economic and public safety benefits.

The prospect of a second bridge over the Kennebec River in Skowhegan took on new urgency after historic flooding following a major storm in December 2023.

The rising river forced the closure of the Margaret Chase Smith Bridges to nonemergency traffic for nearly two days, cutting off one side of the town from the other and affecting first responders’ ability to handle emergencies. Those bridges, which carry traffic across the Kennebec via an island, are the only way for a vehicle to cross the river in town.

Around that time, Maine DOT officials also shared that the Margaret Chase Smith Bridges are due for maintenance in the next decade, which would require the construction of a temporary bridge to detour traffic.

A group of local and state officials and other stakeholders studying various traffic and transportation improvements as part of Maine DOT’s Village Partnership Initiative, or VPI, decided then that the construction of a second bridge should be a priority among other projects on the table. The impacts of having a second bridge would guide subsequent decisions, the committee largely agreed.

Town officials requested the state proceed with the bridge project in 2024. The VPI master study, finalized this spring, memorialized it as a priority.

That marked a departure from the group’s initial outlook when it was brought together in 2022. Officials said at that time they were first focusing on other traffic improvements downtown while waiting to see how other infrastructure projects, including a new elementary school and the whitewater River Park, moved along.

Maine DOT settled on the downtown location of the bridge after the two most recent studies, including one that was part of the VPI, determined that spot would provide the greatest utility, Drost said. 

It would come with potential impacts to the Veterans Memorial Park on Water Street and homes on the south side of town, issues that residents have raised at prior public meetings. Officials said they are aware of those potential impacts and the environmental study would address them further.

The town first formed a committee in 1997 to study the issue of a second river crossing. In 2004, residents supported a new bridge in a nonbinding vote. Talks went relatively quiet for the next decade before officials began formally discussing the idea again in 2018.

In 2020, as part of Maine DOT’s latest involvement in the project before the VPI, several locations for the bridge were proposed, both upstream and downstream of the existing bridges. Those proposals were later narrowed to two.

The other of the final two options, farther downstream near the Great Eddy, was ruled out during the VPI study.