Business groups protest proposed highway sign changes
Business owners from around the state testified Tuesday against a bill that would remove signs indicating area attractions from the shoulder of interstate highways, a change Maine officials say could preserve millions in federal funding.
The Portland Press Herald reported the bill would remove signs designated as “supplemental guide signs,” brown signs with white lettering that direct travelers to certain attractions off the highway. The newspaper reported the proposal would alter around 30% of those signs along the Maine Turnpike, Interstate 295 and Interstate 395. Signs for towns like Arundel, Hallowell and Topsham would be removed from the highway because they have fewer than 10,000 residents and are not considered major attractions. The federal standards would also call for removal of supplemental guide signs for ski areas with less than 1,000 feet of vertical drop and fewer than 40 maintained trails and would affect other attractions, like Funtown Splashtown USA in Saco.
Peter Mills, executive director of the Maine Turnpike Authority, told members of the Legislature’s Transportation Committee Tuesday that the state has for years added signs that do not adhere to federal standards.
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