U.S. Senators Olympia J. Snowe and Susan Collins and Representative Mike Michaud announced that the U.S. Department of Transportation has awarded $10,546,436 to the Maine Department of Transportation to repair and improve the Montreal, Maine and Atlantic Railway (MMA) line in Aroostook and northern Penobscot counties. The funding is being made available through the second round of grants from the Transportation Investment Generating Economic Recovery (TIGER) program. U.S. Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood called Senators Snowe and Collins and Rep. Michaud this morning to inform them of the DOT's decision.

The funding will be used for the Aroostook Railroad Preservation and Rehabilitation Project, which seeks to replace railroad ties, rail sections and clear drainage ditches to restore the rail routes serving northern Maine. The State of Maine is currently negotiating with MMA to acquire 233 miles of the rail line, which MMA seeks to abandon. In June, Maine voters approved a $-million bond package to purchase the rail lines. However, sections of the existing track are in poor condition and require significant repair. Maintaining the operability of the rail line is critical to the economic viability of the region, as the line is northern Maine's sole link to the national rail network.