ROCKLAND - The Maine Department of Transportation is pleased to announce that William Geary, Jr. is the new Director of the Maine State Ferry Service.

Born on Vinalhaven, Bill is a 1998 graduate of Maine Maritime Academy, where he earned an Unlimited 3rd Mate's license. He served as an officer in the U.S. Navy for six years and was involved in the Kosovo Campaign.

NORWAY - The Maine Department of Transportation will be doing paving work on Route 117 in Norway. The project area begins 0.8 miles north of the Otisfield town line and extends north for approximately three miles to the intersection of Routes 117 and 118. Work is scheduled to begin on June 9th and be completed by July 14th. Drivers may encounter a single-lane, alternating traffic pattern during daytime hours. The contractor on this project is Pratt & Sons, Inc. of Minot. The contract amount is $875,000.

CORNISH/HIRAM - The Maine Department of Transportation will be rehabilitating the Hiram Bridge, which carries Bridge Street over the Ossipee River between Cornish and Hiram. Some elements of the bridge are experiencing advanced deterioration. The bridge is currently posted at 22 tons. Rehabilitation work will extend the life of the bridge and may allow for a less-restrictive bridge posting. This work will require the bridge to be closed to traffic from June 14th until August 25th. Detoured traffic should use Durgintown Road and South Hiram Road.

ANDROSCOGGIN AND CUMBERLAND COUNTIES - The Maine Department of Transportation will be doing paving work and making other improvements along nearly 11 miles of Routes 122 and 26 in Auburn, New Gloucester, Poland, and Mechanic Falls. The project area begins where Route 122 meets Route 100/4 in Auburn. It runs along Route 122, through New Gloucester, until it meets Route 26 in Poland. The project area then extends north just past the intersection of Routes 26 and 11 in Mechanic Falls. Work is scheduled to begin on June 12th and be finished by September 30th.

SEARSPORT - The Maine Department of Transportation is beginning work on a project that involves rehabilitation and reconstruction of Route 1 in downtown Searsport.

The work area begins at Savage Road and extends north for nearly two miles to Station Avenue. The project involves the addition of a center left-turn lane between Trundy Road and Station Avenue. This work will also involve eliminating gaps in sidewalks to create a continuous accessible route downtown for pedestrians. MaineDOT is working with the town to install pedestrian lighting and brick sidewalks.

WISCASSET - The Maine Department of Transportation will be replacing the railroad crossing on Route 1 in Wiscasset next week. This work will require the closure of Route 1 at Federal Street and Eddy Road from 8:00 p.m. on Monday, June 26th until 6:00 a.m. on Tuesday, June 27th. Signs will direct drivers to a detour using Federal Street, Route 218, and Sheepscott Road. The contractor on this project is Maine Track Maintenance of Waterville. The contract amount is approximately $80,000.

WILTON - Maine Department of Transportation crews and contracting partners have been working since last night to respond to road washouts caused by yesterday's intense rainfall. This work will continue into the holiday weekend. The damage is especially severe along parts of Route 133 in Jay and Wilton. This road may remain closed for several days.

MaineDOT is working closely with MEMA and other appropriate state agencies to reopen these roads as soon as practicable. We appreciate the public's patience and understanding as our crews do this important work.

ANDROSCOGGIN AND OXFORD COUNTIES - The Maine Department of Transportation is doing paving work and making other improvements along parts of routes 4 and 108 in Livermore, Hartford, and Canton. The Route 4 project area begins north of Mangan Road in Livermore and extends north for three miles. The Route 108 project area begins at Route 4 in Livermore and extends north for 7.5 miles, ending in Canton. Driver may encounter single-lane, alternative traffic patterns. Work began on July 5th and is scheduled to be finished by September 21st.

PORTLAND/SOUTH PORTLAND - The Maine Department of Transportation will be performing maintenance work on the Casco Bay Bridge next week. This work will require a traffic restriction on the bridge. Vehicles weighing more than 25 tons (50,000 pounds) will not be permitted to cross the bridge from Monday, July 10th through Thursday, July 13th. This restriction will be in place around the clock on these days. MaineDOT will also use message boards to alert drivers of the temporary weight restriction. Like all outside construction work, this schedule is weather-dependent.

PORTLAND - The Maine Department of Transportation is repainting two bridges on I-295 in Portland: Tukey's Bridge carries the interstate over Back Cove, and Franklin Bridge carries the interstate over Franklin Street. Crews will be removing the old paint from both bridges (stripping it down to the steel) and then reapplying three new coats of paint to each bridge. This routine maintenance work will help extend the lives of these critical bridges. This project will involve periodic overnight lane closures of I-295 while crews set up and break down their equipment.