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FORT KENT, Maine — Maine must reapply for $3 million in federal funding after the U.S. Department of Transportation says that technical issues prevented the completion of grant applications filed in late March to a program that supports rural and tribal projects.
Maine filed two applications during that time, which together would have provided $3 million to cover the costs of engineering studies in the communities of Fort Kent, Van Buren, Pittsfield and Norway.
While Maine has been dealing with the disruption of various types of federal funding since the new Trump administration began investigating the state over its transgender athlete policy earlier this winter, it does not appear that this cancellation of the transportation grants is related to that dispute or limited to Maine.
In a note on its website, U.S. DOT said that technical issues prevented applications from getting completed between March 18 and March 21 for the federal Rural and Tribal Assistance Pilot Program. These issues have temporarily closed the program, and U.S. DOT said that applications will need to be resubmitted once the portal reopens. A new application opening date has yet to be determined.
“Due to technical issues applicants experienced when attempting to apply for Rural and Tribal Assistance Program funding, the application portal has been closed,” the website states. “The RTA program will not review any applications submitted and no grants will be awarded from applications submitted during the portal opening between March 18 and March 21, 2025.”
The agency added, “We appreciate the efforts of communities to prepare applications and regret any inconvenience.”
According to Maine DOT, the grants did not require any matching funds from the state or communities. They were to cover engineering costs for the state agency’s Village Partnership Initiative program, which provides communities with once-in-a-generation improvements to village center and downtown areas.
The program brings improvements that showcase the personality, character and history of communities while emphasizing the safety of people who are walking, bicycling or driving a vehicle.
This closure canceled a $750,000 grant application for Pittsfield, and a $2.25 million grant application that would have covered engineering for Norway, Fort Kent and Van Buren.
Maine DOT spokesperson Damian Veilleux said that the agency has not experienced any other issues when submitting for federal grants this year.
The application process should also be unchanged when the issues are resolved.
“There was no indication provided by USDOT that there would be new submission standards or requirements,” Veilleux said.
The federal transportation website stated that it will announce the new application date when it is available, and that an announcement will also be made on grants.gov and via LinkedIn.
Maine DOT “anticipates additional funding opportunities later this year as USDOT updates priorities and guidance under the new administration,” Veilleux said.
Public transportation advocates are pushing a slate of measures aimed at streamlining and expanding transit options in the state.
According to a new report from the Moving Maine network, two in five Mainers are “transportation insecure,” meaning they lack reliable ways to get around.
Josh Caldwell of the Natural Resources Council of Maine said that’s fixable — but it’s going to take coordination and buy-in at the state level.
“We just need to keep investing in those things to ensure and expand those options, to ensure that Mainers have reliable and safe ways to get around, but are not simply a car,” Caldwell said.
Transportation is responsible for nearly half of the state’s carbon emissions from fossil fuels. Advocates acknowledge that in a large, rural place like Maine, driving is often a daily necessity. But with the rising cost of cars, they say all Mainers should have a way to get to where they need to go.
GRAY, Maine (WABI) – A Windham man suffered serious injuries after a crash involving a motorcycle and an SUV in Gray Monday morning.
It happened on West Gray Road around 6:30 a.m.
The Cumberland County Sheriff’s Office says as 59-year-old Cheryl Royal of Gray was turning, a motorcycle driven by 50-year-old William Segler struck the driver’s side of Royal’s SUV.
Officials say Segler was taken to a Portland hospital with serious injuries.
Royal was not injured.
Investigators say Royal failed to yield to the right of way, but the crash remains under investigation.
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Local News
A 26-year-old fisherman died Friday after he and another crew member were injured in an accident aboard their fishing boat off the North Shore, officials said.
Just before 4 p.m., the US Coast Guard responded to a distress call reporting that a snapped rope had struck two crew members on the 25 TO LIFE, a fishing vessel, according to spokesperson and Petty Officer 2nd Class Diolanda Caballero. The boat was located about 25 miles east of Nahant.
One of the crew members suffered a concussion and possible broken ribs, and the other, later identified as Jaxson Marston, had a broken neck and was “intermittently unresponsive,” Caballero said in a statement.
The Coast Guard launched response boats and diverted a helicopter to aid in the recovery, according to officials. Shortly after 5 p.m., one of the response boats reached the 25 TO LIFE and delivered the two crew members to a Gloucester pier.
The crew members were transferred to emergency medical services and taken to Beverly Hospital, where Marston was pronounced dead on arrival, officials said.
Marston was originally from Addison, Maine, according to the Bangor Daily News. Josh Stubbs, a member of the town’s select board, said on Facebook that he loved Marston “like a brother.”
“I have had trouble all day trying to find the right words to say,” Stubbs wrote. “I have known you for a long time. But the last years we have been close. I don’t know what to do.”
Cape Ann Lobstermen, a fish market in Gloucester, started a fundraiser to provide for Marston’s family, scallop fisherman Jesse Roche posted on Facebook. For the fundraiser, fishermen are encouraged to donate a bag of scallops out of their final catch, with the proceeds going to the family.
Maine State Representative Tiffany Strout offered her condolences on Facebook.
“Jaxson, only 26 years old, a husband, a dad, hard worker, passionate hunter and a freind to many was doing what he had done many times before, just trying to earn an honest living to support his family,” she wrote. “Now his family can use all the support as they try to move forward with the loss of their loved one.”
Strout also encouraged community members to keep the other crew member and his family in their thoughts, writing that he “needs all the support for him and his family as he tries to recover from his injuries.”
“A reminder that life is short, things can change in an instant and sometime accidents just happen, even with the most caution and readiness,” Strout wrote. “Please keep the fishermen’s family’s in your thoughts and give your family and friends big hugs as I am sending big hugs to the families.”
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