The final phase of closures of I-295 Exit 7 (Franklin Street) for the City’s Back Cove Sewer Separation Project will begin Thursday, May 19, 2022.  All Exit 7 ramps, northbound and southbound, will experience single lane closures during the daytime over the next five (5) weeks and complete closure for overnight paving operations tentatively scheduled for the week of June 20.  During the overnight paving operation, the intersection of Marginal Way and Franklin Street will be closed in all directions except for allowance of a right turn from Marginal Way onto Franklin Street heading East which is the Metro bus route. Access to Marginal Way will be available through local streets.  

Variable message boards and a traffic control plan rerouting motorists will be implemented. Motorists are encouraged to use Congress Street or Cumberland Avenue as detour routes around the project area. Motorists should make plans to seek alternate routes during this time. 

The Back Cove South Storage Facility Project has installed utilities within the intersection of Marginal Way and Franklin Street to the new storage tanks under the Preble Street playing fields. There is now some final drainage, curbing, guardrail and pavement that needs to be installed.

This project is one of the City’s latest sewer separation projects to prevent combined sewer overflows into Back Cove. The work to reduce overflows is part of the City’s agreement with the U.S. EPA to reduce and eliminate the flow of combined waste being discharged. A combined sewer system transports wastewater from home, industries, and businesses, as well as storm water collected from streets, parking lots, roofs, and yards to the East End Wastewater Treatment Plant. A combined sewer overflow occurs when the combined sewer capacity is overwhelmed during heavy rain events and a mix of sewer and storm water is discharged into Back Cove. 

The Department of Public Works has been coordinating with the prime contractor, Sargent Corporation, and the Maine Department of Transportation, as part of a traffic control plan to minimize the impacts to the traveling public.

Related graphics and updates to the project can be found on the Public Works website.