Bayside Transportation Master Plan To Begin - Kickoff Meeting September 15

Portland, Maine - On September 15, 2015 at 6:00 PM at the Merrill Auditorium Rehearsal Hall (entrance on Myrtle St), the City of Portland will hold the first public workshop for the Bayside Transportation Master Plan Study. The study includes the area bounded by Washington Avenue, Forest Avenue, I-295, and Cumberland Avenue.

The study will build upon and integrate much of the transportation planning work and changing land
uses that have taken place in the past fifteen years in both east and west Bayside.  It will take a fresh look at street configurations, on-street parking, transit, land use and bike and pedestrian connectivity in order to fulfill the vision of Bayside as a sustainable, mixed-use transit-oriented neighborhood.

Recommendations from other relevant studies, such as the recently approved Franklin Street Phase 2 Study, will be fine tuned as they affect Bayside locations so as to improve transportation accessibility and safety for all modes of travel (vehicles, transit, bicycling and walking).

While looking at the transportation system within Bayside as a whole, the study will focus on recommendations for the configuration and connectivity of several key neighborhood streets, including:

·         Marginal Way
·         Portland and Oxford Streets
·         Lancaster Street
·         Pearl Street
·         Preble and Elm Streets.

The study will also assess and recommend improvements to transit access and service.

The kickoff workshop on September 15 will be the first of three such meetings designed to provide the public with hands-on input into the plan. Other ways for the public to provide feedback will include an online series of questions to be posted on September 16th at www.portlandstudies.org and in October, a Saturday walk-in storefront location in Bayside itself for those who want to comment or ask questions in an informal setting.

The study will be completed by the end of 2015.