Infrastructure

Transportation > Railroads

Seven private railroad companies, operating over 1,400 miles of track, service Maine. These rail companies connect to major rail carriers in the United States and Canada, including Canadian Pacific, Canadian National, CSX, and Norfolk Southern rail systems.

Three of these railroads, the St.Lawrence & Atlantic Railroad (SL&A), the Pan Am Railway (Guilford Rail System), and the Montreal, Maine and Atlantic Railroad (MMA),  form the core of the regional rail network.

The Maine Department of Transportation’s Industrial Rail Access Program (IRAP) provides a maximum of 50 percent of estimated project costs to certain public and private investments in rail infrastructure, such as new siding improvements, right-of-way acquisition, and intermodal facility construction.

The Downeaster Passenger Rail Service, operated by AMTRAK, offers regularly scheduled train service between Portland and Boston. The sleek passenger train operates within a 114-mile corridor between Boston and Portland and includes stops in Haverhill, MA; Exeter, Durham, and Dover, New Hampshire; and Wells, Saco and, in the summer, Old Orchard Beach, Maine. Expansion is planned for Freeport, Brunswick, and Lewiston/Auburn. The train runs four-five trips a day between Boston and Portland, 365 days a year.

Photo Courtesy Maine DOT