CARIBOU, Maine – Caribou and state leaders want to gather public feedback on a proposed project aimed at improving pedestrian and cyclists’ access to downtown.
On Thursday, Dec. 19, Caribou and the Maine Department of Transportation will host a meeting at 6:30 p.m. at Caribou Wellness & Recreation Center, 55 Bennett Drive, as part of their recent Village Partnership Initiative.
MaineDOT’s Village Partnership Initiative works with municipalities to increase the likelihood that pedestrians and cyclists can access downtown services and businesses, improve safety and enhance economic growth. In Aroostook, DOT officials are working with Presque Isle, Van Buren, Fort Kent and Madawaska on Village Partnership Initiatives tailored toward each community’s needs.
City Manager Penny Thompson said she encourages residents to attend Thursday’s meeting to voice thoughts on pedestrian safety and the project proposals.
“The intent is to engage the community with a discussion of transportation safety needs, focusing on how infrastructure improvements for walking, biking and driving can support downtown revitalization and riverfront development while enhancing Caribou’s identity and character,” Thompson said.
In 2023, Caribou agreed to work with the DOT and hired T.Y.Lin International in Falmouth to study traffic volumes, safety issues and walkability obstacles and recommend potential improvements. T.Y.Lin is working with Presque Isle, Van Buren, Fort Kent and Madawaska on similar studies.
Based on their study, MaineDOT and T.Y.Lin are recommending three components to Caribou’s road upgrades: an estimated 2 ½ to 3-mile downtown walking/bike path, 10-foot-wide “shared use bike lanes” and looping the current Collins Pond path with the new downtown path.
The downtown path would go from Caribou High School on Sweden Street, throughout the remainder of Sweden Street, Herschel Street, Hatch Drive and Water Street, and then onto Main Street and up towards Caribou Community School on Glenn Street and the recreation center.
The shared use lanes would be interspersed throughout that path so that pedestrians and cyclists can use those spaces without having to move over for each other, said Jarod Farn-Guillette, MaineDOT regional planner.
Communities like Falmouth and Bar Harbor recently have gotten positive public feedback on their shared use lanes, with Bar Harbor looking to expand theirs from eight feet to 10 feet, Farn-Guillette said. In rural communities like Caribou, shared use lanes can encourage more pedestrian safety on widely travelled roads.
“Caribou has some roads that are very wide and the travel lanes have wide shoulders. There’s not a lot of compliance with local speed limits,” Farn-Guillette said. “When you have closed [walking] loops, you increase walkability and reduce the likelihood of conflicts between vehicles and anyone not protected inside a vehicle.”
The Collins Pond loop would ideally connect both with the downtown path and with the Aroostook River region near Water Street, promoting not just walkability but also the city’s future riverfront development goals, Farn-Guillette noted.
Since the city, MaineDOT and T.Y.Lin are still in the preliminary stages of the Village Partnership Initiative, they want to gain a better sense of how the community feels about the proposals, Farn-Guillette said.
The team would then refine the project’s scope and conduct engineering to determine estimated construction costs and a timeline, which could take from a year to 16 months depending on the city’s wants and needs, Farn-Guillette noted.
Ideally, the MaineDOT would use federal discretionary funds to cover a 80-percent of the project, with the city contributing matching funds. Grants are also a possibility, Farn-Guillette said.
“We want people to bring an honest perspective of their experiences navigating Caribou,” Farn-Guillette said about the Thursday public meeting. “This is their opportunity to engage with the future of their community.”
While influenza remains the top concern for Maine public health experts, other viruses are also currently circulating, including norovirus and COVID-19.
“Influenza is clearly the main event,” said Dr. Cheryl Liechty, a MaineHealth infectious disease specialist. “The curve in terms of the rise of influenza cases was really steep.”
Maine reported 1,343 flu cases for the week ending Jan. 3, an uptick from the 1,283 cases recorded the previous week, according to the Maine Center for Disease Control and Prevention. Hospitalizations increased to 147 from 108 during the same time periods.
“I hope the peak is now,” Liechty said, “but I’m not really sure.”
The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reported on Friday that all of New England, except for Vermont, is currently experiencing “very high” levels of influenza. Vermont is in the “moderate” category.
“What we are seeing, overwhelmingly, is the flu,” said Andrew Donovan, associate vice president of infection prevention for Northern Light Health. “We are seeing both respiratory and gastrointestinal viruses in our patients.”
Norovirus also appears to be circulating, although due to its short duration and because it’s less severe than the flu, public health data on the illness — which causes gastrointestinal symptoms that typically resolve within a few days — is not as robust.
“Norovirus is the gastrointestinal scourge of New England winters and cruise ships,” Liechty said.
According to surveillance data at wastewater treatment plants in Portland, Bangor and Lewiston, norovirus levels detected in those communities are currently “high.” The treatment plants participate in WastewaterSCAN, which reports virus levels in wastewater through a program run by Stanford University and Emory University.
Dr. Genevieve Whiting, a Westbrook pediatrician and secretary of the Maine chapter of the American Academy of Pediatrics, said viruses are prevalent right now, especially the flu and norovirus.
“For my patients right now, it’s a rare encounter that I hear everyone in a family has been healthy,” Whiting said. “I’ve had families come in and say their entire family has had norovirus. Several of my patients have had ER visits for suspected norovirus, where they needed IV fluids because they were dehydrated.”
Both Liechty and Whiting said they are seeing less respiratory syncytial virus, or RSV, likely because there has been good uptake of the new RSV vaccine, which is recommended for older people and those who are pregnant. The vaccine was approved by the Food and Drug Administration in 2023.
“The RSV vaccine has been a real success, as RSV was a leading cause of hospitalizations for babies,” Whiting said.
Meanwhile, COVID-19 cases increased to 610 in the final week of 2025, compared to 279 the previous week. Influenza and COVID-19 vaccinations are available at primary care, pharmacies and clinics across the state.
“If you haven’t gotten your flu shot yet,” Liechty said, “you should beat a hasty path to get your shot.”
Defensemen Max Wanner was re-assigned to the Maine Mariners from the Providence Bruins on Thursday. Defenseman Michael Underwood was also re-assigned to Maine.
Wanner, 22, was acquired by the Boston Bruins when they traded Trent Federic to Edmonton last March. He played in 15 games for the AHL Providence Bruins at the end of last season, and seven this season.
Underwood returns for his second stint with the Mariners. He appeared in 67 games with Maine last season.
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