Many residents along Brackett Road and Libby Avenue want the roads repaired but worry that Maine Department of Transportation plans in their neighborhoods would lead to increased speeding and more traffic.

“They go fast now. I think they’ll go faster,” said Paul Pennell, as he scanned a stretched out wall map to locate his home on Brackett Road.

Pennell, who worries about traffic while crossing Brackett Road to his mailbox, was one of 60 people who turned out on Monday night for a Maine Department of Transportation public hearing on a $5.5 million project. Gorham voters will decide on Nov. 8 whether they want to borrow $1.16 million as the town’s share to improve Brackett Road and a section of Libby Avenue.

“It’s turned into a small race track. Why would I want to vote for this,” Jim Holmes of Brackett Road told state officials.

The project would cover the part of Libby Avenue from Route 25 to New Portland Road and all of Brackett Road from New Portland Road to Saco Street. Costs, including engineering and land acquisition from abutters, would be $1.3 million for Libby Avenue and $4.2 million for Brackett Road, which is 1.9 miles. And Gorham resident Bernard Rines suggested the department consider a roundabout for the intersection of Brackett Road with Saco Street.

Transportation Department officials said reconstruction would make the roads safer for motorists and pedestrians. Grades on a hill on Libby Avenue and another at the intersection of Brackett Road and McLellan Road would be changed to improve sight distances for motorists.

But a grade change caused a concern for Cliff Perry of Libby Avenue. “Will I have to have an elevator to get into my driveway,” Perry said.

For walkers and bicyclists, the state is planning four-foot paved shoulders. There would be a total pavement width of 30 feet with two 11-foot travel lanes.

Town Manager David Cole said the town applied in 1998 for the project because the roads were in disrepair. Both roads handle rush hour traffic with more than 4,000 cars a day on Brackett Road and 2,800 on that part of Libby Avenue. Twenty-year projections indicate traffic increasing to more than 4,000 on Libby Avenue and more than 6,450 on Brackett Road. Shawn Smith, the project manager, said the roads are major urban collectors.

Conrad and Rosielyn Ustaris have lived on Brackett Road since 1990 and have seen the increase in traffic in recent years. She said many motorists use it as a shortcut. “It’s no longer a quiet road,” Conrad Ustaris said.

Brackett Road resident Gene Bibber said the road gets a lot of commuter traffic and needs repairs. “They need to do something. It’s pretty crummy,” Bibber said.

Trucks now represent 5 percent of the total traffic volume, according to Transportation Department figures. But Jim Gregoire of Brackett Road said the road was once a limited access road. He said if the classification hadn’t been changed allowing big trucks the road wouldn’t be in its current situation.

Now facing reconstruction of the roads in their neighborhoods, residents fear increased traffic and more speeding. Charles and June Leighton have lived on Brackett Road since 1965. “We want it fixed,” June Leighton said before the meeting. But, “we don’t need a super highway.”

Others also felt Transportation Department plans were more than necessary. Denise Whitehead of Brackett Road thought the department goal was to create a mini bypass. “Just pave it,” she urged.

Michael Flemming of Libby Avenue said motorists would likely travel faster on reconstructed roads. “If you increase the line of sight but don’t police it, people will speed more,” he said.

According to Bibber, the current 40-miles-per-hour speed limit on most of Brackett Road is reasonable, but he said many cars were traveling in excess of 50 miles per hour. “Speed is an issue that really needs to be addressed,” Bibber said, who has lived on Brackett Road for 39 years.

Holmes called the stretch of Brackett Road from Day Road to New Portland Road an accelerated zone and suggested a traffic light at the Day Road intersection. “The main concern is speed and traffic,” Holmes said. “What can be done to slow traffic down?”

Cole said traffic enforcement for extended periods is difficult. Every neighborhood says speeding is a problem, and lowering speed limits is up to the state, Cole said. “There’s no magic bullet to make people act responsibly,” Cole said.

Worrying about safety of motorists and protecting wildlife, Joanne Pride, who has lived on Brackett Road for 44 years, said the road should be posted with deer crossing signs, warning drivers. She lives across from a state wildlife preserve, and deer cross through her property. She said a motorcyclist was almost killed recently in a collision with a deer.

If Gorham voters approve the referendum, the Transportation Department would need to acquire property from abutters. Mike Danforth, the project’s senior right-of-way team member, said 75 property owners would be affected on Brackett Road and 18 on Libby Avenue. Additionally, the state would have to acquire temporary work rights on other properties. A department booklet about land acquisition was available to residents.

Charles Crockett of Day Road opposed the town borrowing money for the project. If the referendum passes, the project could start in the spring of 2007.

But resident Carl Pike wondered about the future of the project if the town votes it down. “Will the project go forward,” Pike asked.

Smith said that the project would likely go into hold. “The town share is a critical component,” he said.

Now, the project is in the hands of the voters. “What we say here has no bearing,” Holmes said.

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Cliff Perry of Libby Avenue discusses the state’s plans for Libby Avenue and Brackett Road with Shawn Smith, the MDOT project engineer.Two Brackett Road neighbors, Joanne Pride and Paul Pennell talk over MDOT plans for Brackett Road and Libby Avenue. Gorham voters will decide on Nov. 8 whether they want to borrow $1.16 million to reconstruct those roads.

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