The University of Maine DigitalCommons@UMaine Transportation Margaret Chase Smith Policy Center 6-2021 Rural Public Transportation and Maine: Review of State Best Practices Erin Brown Jonathan Rubin Follow this and additional works at: https://digitalcommons.library.umaine.edu/mcspc_transport This Report is brought to you for free and open access by DigitalCommons@UMaine. It has been accepted for inclusion in Transportation by an authorized administrator of DigitalCommons@UMaine. For more information, please contact
[email protected]. Rural Public Transportation and Maine: Review of State Best Practices Rural Public Transportation and Maine: Review of State Best Practices Technical Report June 2021 Erin Brown and Jonathan Rubin Margaret Chase Smith Policy Center and the School of Economics University of Maine Abstract MaineDOT has a family of transit plans that have been developed over the past five years through collaborative efforts with partners and stakeholders. These plans share similar themes, guidance, and recommendations and tie into the Department’s last Strategic Plan, which was completed in 2016. However, since their development, there have been a number of important and related efforts and developments that impact the strategic vision and plan for transit services in Maine. This report reviews how other states with similar demographics, population disbursements, and climates are addressing their transit challenges, with a focus on rural areas, access, and equity. One caution is that states and transit agencies do not use the same metrics when reporting program costs and benefits. Acknowledgements and Disclaimers This study would not have been possible without the strong cooperation of the Maine Department of Transportation.