‘The gap is gone!’ New stretch of Eastern Trail opens 15 months early
Cyclists bike on the new section of the Eastern Trail near the Wainwright Sports Complex in South Portland for the first time after the "Close the Gap" project was completed on Aug. 6. (Salomé Cloteaux Staff/Writer)
SOUTH PORTLAND — Finally, the gap is closed. After over a decade of planning, setbacks, fundraising and permitting, the “Close the Gap” project opening a key segment of the Eastern Trail is finished, 15 months ahead of schedule.
The 1.6-mile section of the Eastern Trail connecting Scarborough and South Portland opened Thursday in front of a few hundred cyclists, walkers and runners who attended the ribbon-cutting ceremony.
Closing the gap — between the Wainwright Sports Complex in South Portland and the Nonesuch River in Scarborough — created a continuous 16-mile trail without on-road gaps from Bug Light Park to downtown Saco. It was a long-awaited step to fully connecting the Eastern Trail, a 65-mile off-road trail from South Portland to Kittery.
“It’s also about more than just opening a section of trail; it’s about connecting communities and fulfilling a vision that has been years in the making,” South Portland Mayor Elyse Tipton said. “The gap is gone!”
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At 10 a.m. at the Wainwright Sports Complex, it was already uncomfortably hot. But the southern Maine outdoor recreation community had been waiting years for the trail — what was one more hour in the sun?
“I’m so excited to ride it,” a community member said, looking for some shade. “It looks like such a beautiful trail.”
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“I think the trail is going to be busy today,” another said. “I have my bike in the car.”
Past the maze of trail enthusiasts wearing bike helmets or running shoes, a red ribbon was now the only thing separating the crowd from the freshly paved trail. But before everyone could rush onto it, there were many to acknowledge and thank, including 550 people, agencies and corporations who supported the project.
Scarborough has been at the helm of the project, working with South Portland, the Maine Department of Transportation, Federal Highway Administration, Eastern Trail Alliance and many others. Most of the funding came from federal dollars, but state agencies, individual donors, and local taxpayers contributed to the project.
“The trail reminds us that city and town lines don’t really define how people live. We are neighboring communities,” Tipton said. “When we work together, we can do something bigger than a community can accomplish alone.”
Over the years, the project persisted through ownership changes, a pandemic, economic cycles, and many local leaders, Scarborough Town Councilor Cory Fellows said during his speech. Many speakers thanked Scarborough Town Manager Tom Hall, described as the last man standing on the project. He’s one of the very few who’s been involved in the project since its beginning.
Hall was happy, but not surprised to see the turnout Thursday, he said. It was a challenge to keep people off the trail while it was under construction. Seeing the project come to fruition was a truly gratifying moment in his career, he said.
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Dakota Hewlett, active transportation planner at Maine DOT, said “Close the Gap” was one of the most complex locally administered DOT projects in years.
A little over a year ago, a group of people gathered in the same place for the trail’s groundbreaking. The project was expected to be finished by October 2027. It was completed over a year ahead of schedule.
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“This is a big day for the state of Maine,” Dennis Markatos-Soriano, executive director of the East Coast Greenway Alliance, said. “This is also a big day for the whole Eastern Seaboard.”
Around 10:50 a.m., it was time to finally close the gap.
“Thank you for coming,” Hall said after the ribbon was cut. “The trail is open for use.”
The cyclists went first, smiling and cheering for the cameras that documented the opening, followed by dozens of people on foot.
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“Sweet!” a cyclist in a bright yellow jersey said to himself as he sped along the trail, the wheels of his bike whirring.
Scarborough residents Dan Bouchard and Norman Gallant walked together, chatting about their favorite memories on the Eastern Trail. They use it almost daily, walking in the spring and summer, and snowshoeing in the winter.
Gallant was too impatient to wait until the new section opened. In the spring, he went to the trail while it was under construction, and the contractors let him sit and watch while they worked.
He said it was a treat to watch when a bridge was installed over the railroad crossing near Pleasant Hill.
Sometimes he and Bouchard snuck through the gates to see how the trail was progressing. Gallant even fell while crossing the railroad tracks for the first time while the area was under construction.
“I was a bad boy,” Gallant said. “I went across the tracks all the time.”
Bouchard’s children have grown up on the Eastern Trail. He used to gather all the family’s bikes in the back of their van, park near the trail, and then pedal across the marsh toward Pine Point Road. The kids’ favorite part was stopping at the Clambake Seafood Restaurant on the way back.
Now, his kids come back to visit with their own children. When they do, they always make a point to take a walk along the Eastern Trail. They have a new section to discover now.
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Tagged: biking, Eastern Trail, Greater Portland, Maine Department of Transportation, trails
Salomé Cloteaux is a community reporter covering Scarborough and Westbrook. She was born in France but lived in Indiana for most of her life before moving to Portland in November 2025. Salomé has a degree. More by Salomé Cloteaux
