Rural Public Transportation and Maine: Review of State Best Practices

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