A $1 million study of transportation and growth projections in Portland’s southern and western suburbs is finding that expanding roads may not help much in handling new homes and businesses.

The study, produced by the Maine Turnpike Authority and the state Department of Transportation, hasn’t yet produced anything in writing.

However, public meetings to discuss its informal findings will be held at 6 p.m. today at the Wyndham Hotel in South Portland and Nov. 3 at the Gorham Municipal Center.

To the surprise of probably no one, the study is expected to say that merely building new roads won’t be enough to deal with expected growth in the area, which is projected to be the site of 70 percent of all new homes and jobs in the state for the next 25 years.

So communities in the region, specifically including Portland, need to spend some time thinking and planning for how to handle a trend that is equal parts blessing and challenge.

New homes and jobs, after all, are something to be sought after, not dreaded. Still, while they bring money and opportunity to the region, they will also bring stresses on its infrastructure that its current mix of highways, schools, water supplies and community services are not now capable of meeting.

One of the obvious solutions is to group new development in high-density areas close to existing roads. Another is to plan for transportation alternatives to automobiles that can reduce the need for new roads.

Other answers are also possible, and there is time to find them. However, the time needs to be used profitably, and this process is a sensible first step toward that end.

 

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