An Act To Provide Incentives for Development and To Amend Traffic Movement Permit Standards
Maine Legislature, Session 121, LD 1452
Committee: Transportation
Sponsors: HATCH, USHER
Amends: 23 MRSA §704-A, 30-A MRSA §4103

Legislative Document 
No. 1452 
S.P.484 
In Senate, March 27, 2003 
An Act To Provide Incentives for Development and To Amend 
Traffic Movement Permit Standards 
Submitted by the Department of Transportation pursuant to Joint Rule 204. 
Reference to the Committee on Transportation suggested and ordered printed. 
Presented by Senator HATCH of Somerset. 
Cosponsored by Representative USHER of Westbrook. 
PIin.ed on recycled paper 
JOY J. O'BRIEN 
Secretary of the Senate 
Be it enacted by the People of the State of Maine as follows: 
Sec. 1. 23 MRSA §704-A, sub-§I, ,A·l is enacted to read: 
A-I. 
"High-speed rural arterial highway" means an arterial 
highway as defined in section 704 that is not located in the 
urban 
compact area of 
an 
urban 
compact municipality as 
described in section 754 and where the posted sl:'eed limit at 
the time of the application for a traffic movement permit is 
miles per hour or greater. 
Sec. 2. 23 MRS A §704-A, sub-§I, ,D is enacted to read: 
D. 
"Traffic demand management technigues" 
means measures 
taken to reduce or spread peak hour traffic over a longer 
period of time. 
Such measures include, but are not limited 
to, on-site facilities or on-site design considerations to 
support 
local, 
regional 
or 
state 
bicycle, 
pedestrian, 
passenger rail, transit and ride-sharing efforts or plans. 
The 
department 
may 
not 
reguire 
operational 
support 
of 
passenger 
transportation 
systems 
or 
reguire 
parking 
management strategies of the permit applicant. 
Sec. 3. 23 MRSA §704-A, sub-§2, ,C, as enacted by PL 1999, c. 
468, §2, is repealed. 
Sec. 4. 23 MRSA §704-A, sub-§2, ,I>, as enacted by PL 1999, c. 
468, §2, is repealed and the following enacted in its place: 
D. 
If a project is located in an area desi<;Jnated as 
a 
growth area in a local growth management plan that has been 
found 
by 
the 
State 
to 
be 
consistent 
with 
the 
growth 
management 
program 
in Title 
30-A, 
chapter 
and 
the 
project does not have an entrance or exit located on 
a 
high-speed rural arterial highway and the applicant for a 
traffic movement permit implements traffic demand management 
technigues recommended by the 
dE~partment, then the reguired 
improvements are limited: 
(1) 
To those necessary to mitigate the impact of the 
project provided all safety standards are met, even if 
part or all of the traffic impact occurs outside the 
boundaries of the growth area: and 
(2) 
To the entrances and exits of the project, if the 
project 
reuses 
previously 
developed 
land 
area 
and 
buildings with no more than a 10% increase in building 
footprint 
regardless 
of 
the 
extent 
of 
vertical 
development. 
Page l-LRI887(1} 
Sec. 5. 23 MRSA §704-A, sub-§2, ,G is enacted to read: 
G. 
For a project that generates 400 or more passenger car 
equivalents at peak hour, with entrances or exits located on 
an arterial highway as defined in section 704, in order to 
limit unnecessary arterial curb cuts and to provide for 
street 
access 
to 
undeveloped 
adjoining 
property, 
the 
applicant shall dedicate for public use at least a 50-foot 
wide right of way to the boundary of adjacent properties 
unless: 
(1) 
Following written opportunity for written comments 
from the municipality, the department determines it is 
not 
in 
the 
public 
interest 
to 
reguire 
access 
to 
adjoining land; 
(2) 
The 
topography is not suitable for 
access 
to 
adjoining land; 
(3) 
The project is surrounded by wetlands or other 
protected natural or cultural resources and no suitable 
land is available for continuation; or 
(4) 
The department finds that a narrower right-of -way 
would accomplish the public interest. 
Sec. 6. 23 MRSA §704-A, sub-§10 is enacted to read: 
10. 
Violation. 
A violation of this section or the rules 
adopted pursuant to this section is punishable by a fine of not 
more than $100 per day per violation. 
The fine begins to accrue 
days after the Department of Transportation sends notice of 
the violation to the landowner. 
The department shall establish 
procedures 
for 
administrative 
enforcement 
of 
this 
section, 
establishing fines and reconsideration and appeals of enforcement 
actions. 
Sec. 7. 30-A MRSA §4103, sub-§3, tJD is enacted to read: 
D. 
The licensing authority may not issue a permit for a 
building or use until the Department of Transportation has 
provided a permit or documentation indicating that an exit 
or 
entrance 
conforms 
to 
Title 
23, 
section 
704, 
if 
applicable, and section 704-A, if applicable. 
Sec. 8. Rulemaking. 
The Department of Transportation may 
adopt rules to implement the purposes of this Act. 
Rules pdopted 
pursuant to this section are routine technical rules as defined 
in Title 5, chapter 375, subchapter 2-A. 
SUMMARY 
This 
bill 
revises 
existing 
incentives 
that 
guide 
the 
location of high-traffic developments generating more than 100 
cars per hour and relaxes the standard for project:s in growth 
areas that reuse currently developed land and buildings with no 
more 
than 
a 
10% 
increase in building footprint 
by limiting 
traffic mitigation requirements to improvements to entrances and 
exits of a project. 
Current law provides this incentive only for 
conversion of existing buildings. 
This bill limits the relaxed standard of traffic mitigation 
requirements to certain growth areas. 
Development incentives are not provided if a development has 
an entrance or an exit on a high-speed arterial hiq-hway. 
This 
bill provides development incentives only if a project provides 
prudent traffic demand management strategies, such as provision 
of 
appropriate 
on-site 
bus 
stops 
or 
train 
platforms. 
The 
department 
may 
not 
require 
operational 
support 
of 
passenger 
transportation systems or parking management strategies. 
This bill 
requires 
that 
the 
largest 
developments 
that 
generate 400 or more passenger car equivalents at peak hour 
provide right-of-way access to 
adjacE~nt parcels, where sensible, 
if these developments are located on a.rterial highways. 
This 
bill 
also 
provides 
enforcement 
mechanisms 
for 
applicants for a building occupancy permit to prove that their 
entrances and exists are legally permitted.