FREEPORT – The state is proposing a radical solution to traffic problems at the Exit 20/Desert Road interchange of I-295 in Freeport.

The department has approached the town and L.L. Bean with a proposal to re-orient the interchange by installing what is known as a “diverging diamond interchange.” It would reroute traffic over the bridge on the opposite side of the road, eliminating the need for cars to cut across oncoming lanes of traffic to make a left turn onto the highway.

The Maine Department of Transportation will be presenting the proposed redesign to the public at a meeting scheduled for Tuesday, Oct. 30, at 6:30 p.m. at the Freeport Community Center, 53 Depot St.

L.L. Bean has been involved in the talks about the redesign because the company has facilities on both sides of the intersection – the retail complex in the village and an order fulfillment center on Desert Road on the west side of I-295.

“The advantage of this plan is that what are now left-turn movements across opposing traffic to get onto the interstate both north and south will not exist,” Freeport Town Engineer Albert Presgraves said.

Traffic signals on each end of the bridge would control the flow of traffic into the intersection, he said.

Traffic would be routed onto the existing bridge, on the opposite side that it travels now, but, Presgraves said, concrete dividers would be installed on the bridge to keep the two lanes apart.

“You won’t be feeling that you’re going the wrong way,” he said.

The advantage is that traffic, once on the bridge, would not have to stop to move onto the highway.

“You will be going across (the bridge) in the left lane,” Presgraves said. “But once you get into that left lane (heading to I-295 south) and you want to go to Portland, which is where over half the traffic wants to go, you just turn.”

“The goal would be to reduce traffic congestion at this exit, especially at the southbound off ramp,” said Ted Talbot, Maine Department of Transportation spokesman. He said the solution is a relatively new concept.

“These type of interchanges have been built in Missouri, Utah, Georgia, Kentucky and New York,” he said. “And the goal is to eliminate risky left turns, while reducing congestion as much as 60 percent.”

Talbot estimated the cost of the project at $1 million. A proposed cost-sharing plan would have 50 percent of the cost being borne by the state, with the town and L.L. Bean each picking up 25 percent each. Talbot added that plans call for the intersection to remain open during construction, which could begin next spring.

Presgraves said the intersection would be a unique one, certainly the only one of its kind for some distance.

“The closest one is in New York State,” he said. “There are none in New England.”

“More states are turning to this type of design to help ease their (traffic) congestion. It works really well,” Talbot said.

Freeport Town Council Chairman Jim Cassida said the state approached the town earlier this year regarding the proposed redesign, and the town, the state and L.L. Bean have been meeting to discuss ideas. Cassida said that while there have been some proposed estimates of cost and how that would be split, nothing has been decided.

“It’s way too early for that,” he said. “There’s nothing concrete and there’s no formal proposal for a split.”

“The town brought Bean’s to the table because they have the big warehouse on the west side of the interstate and they have an interest in good traffic flow to their facility and for that matter, even into downtown Freeport,” Presgraves said. “So they’re interested in seeing that safety and traffic flow maintained.”

L.L. Bean spokeswoman Carolyn Beem said the company is “pretty pleased with DOT for coming up with creative ideas to solve a traffic problem in town.”

She said the company has about 2,000 employees in Freeport, and a large number of those employees use that highway exit to get to work, so the company has an interest in making sure the traffic flows as efficiently and safely as possible.

Beem added that L.L. Bean supports paying for part of the reconstruction.

“We are pleased to be part of the conversation and part of the solution,” she said.

Talbot said that the meeting next week is to determine if Freeport residents want to see a major change to the intersection. If public sentiment is strongly against the change, then the department would re-evaluate its plans for the area.

“(The meeting is about) gauging interest and to see where the town is on this kind of change,” Talbot said.

A rendering by the Maine Department of Transportation of the proposed changes to the I-295 Desert Road exit in Freeport.
The Desert Road bridge crossing the highway at Exit 20 in Freeport. Under a proposal from the Maine Department of Transportation, the intersection would be reconfigured to eliminate traffic entering the highway from having to make a left turn across traffic.