Maine gets $53 million to improve freight rail safety, reconnect former Millinocket plant

The Maine Department of Transportation will receive $53.3 million in federal funds to improve the safety, speed and reliability of rail freight in northern Maine and reconnect a Millinocket plant redevelopment site to global markets.

The grant will be used to upgrade two Eastern Maine Railway main lines in Penobscot, Aroostook, Washington and Piscataquis counties. It will also rehabilitate the tracks at the former Great Northern Paper Co. mill, which have been dormant since 2008.

A freight train travels through Winthrop in July 2023. Ben McCanna/staff photographer

The 1,400-acre mill site is being redeveloped into the One North industrial park, which will include a salmon farm and a variety of other aquaculture, technology and forestry companies.

The revitalized parts and renewed potential to deliver products from Searsport are key aspects of the park’s focus on sustainability, along with access to hydroelectric power and a community solar farm, said Steve Sanders of Our Katahdin, the nonprofit behind One North.

“The rail connection is a big deal for the wood products companies we’re trying to attract,” said Sanders, the mill’s redevelopment director. “It allows companies to move products by rail, take trucks off the road and open up wider markets.”

Our Katahdin has secured an anchor tenant, Katahdin Salmon, which is expected to produce 10,000 metric tons of salmon annually and is in discussions with several other companies, Sanders said.

Funding was awarded through the US Department of Transportation’s Federal Railroad Administration’s Enhanced Rail Infrastructure and Safety Improvement Program.

Eastern Maine Railway and One North will contribute 20 percent of the funding, bringing the total investment to more than $66.6 million, according to Sen. Susan Collins, R-Maine, who announced the funding Friday.

“This investment will make critical safety and reliability improvements to improve freight rail service in rural Maine,” said Collins, who is vice chairman of the Senate Appropriations Committee. “Repairing and expanding our state’s rail network will strengthen economic opportunity and support jobs across the state.”

Rail freight safety in particular has been a growing concern following recent derailments, particularly as operators are responsible for inspecting and maintaining your own tracks. Parliamentarians from Maine approved a bill in April which allows the public to access hazardous rail transport records, but only after a derailment or spill.

The work in northern Maine will upgrade more than 140 miles of rail, said Paul Merrill, a spokesman for the Department of Transportation.

It will install 86,000 new sleepers, 108,000 tonnes of crushed stone ballast supporting the rails and equipment failure detection technology. It will also replace jointed rail with continuously welded rail and upgrade seven highway level crossings.

“In addition to providing critical connections to national and international markets, this work will also support new and sustainable industries and the high-paying jobs they create,” Merrill said.

The federal rail improvement program also supports congestion-relieving upgrades at both intercity passenger and freight rail hubs to support more efficient movement of both people and the goods.

“The rail connection is critical to the success of One North,” said Millinocket City Manager Peter Jamieson. “It opens the door to a bigger industry, more manufacturing opportunities and more new jobs. It’s a connection to the rest of the world.”