Complete Streets & Traffic Calming Guidance Manual
The Town of Scarborough is developing a Complete Streets & Traffic Calming Guidance Manual to help the Town make streets safer and more accommodating to all modes of transportation. The work is led by consultant firm Nelson/Nygaard. The process is heavily informed by community input in public meetings and through direct feedback to staff—feedback is encouraged; however, the manual is geared to overarching principles and strategies and does not address specific issues on individual streets. The goals and objectives for the manual are to:
- Develop design guidance that promotes safer, more complete streets and outlines the benefits and tradeoffs of traffic calming.
- Craft a framework for developers to support consistent complete streets implementation
- Balance priorities for right-of-way allocation
- Ensures safety remains the top priority for all modes of transportation
The format of the framework will largely be informed by the GPCOG guidebook (completed in 2025) in terms of definitions for types of roadways and other design guidance. However, Scarborough will have a few unique neighborhood street types.
Street Types
The 2025 Regional Complete Streets Design Guide Book developed by Greater Portland Council of Government (GPCOG) and the Portland Area Comprehensive Transportation System (PACTS) defines a Complete Streets Framework and defines street types. Scarborough is largely following this regional approach to defining types of streets, but making a few differences due to some unique street types.
The slides below show the drafted street types and which traffic calming treatments are best suited for each. These are actively being defined and public feedback is encouraged.
The street types are defined as:
- Neighborhood Streets (Connector, Local, Beach)
- Major Corridors
- Rural Connectors
- Industrial/Business Access Streets
- Village/Town Streets
Street Types Map
Use the interactive map below to see the streets types for all public roads in Scarborough.
Traffic Calming Examples
Maine has seen an increase in both pedestrian and bicyclist fatalities in recent years. There are strategies to help encourage drivers to reduce speeds, recommended by MaineDOT and GPCOG for municipalities to implement.
The primary purpose of traffic calming is to reduce vehicle speeds and encourage safer driving behaviors, such as yielding to people crossing the street. Traffic calming treatments can be implemented with paint and posts, or as part of more permanent improvements and reconstruction. Traffic calming elements include chicanes, speed tables, speed humps, and rumble strips. See more examples in the Traffic Calming Toolkit slides below.
Public Engagement
October 23, 2025: Public Meeting
The Scarborough Complete Streets and Traffic Calming Guidance Manual is currently in development and in draft form. Please review the map of Town streets and how they've been labeled, and let us know if you have feedback on how they are defined. (We are not currently equipped to take feedback on traffic/safety issues specific to a particular road).
Resources
Select the Resources dropdown below to choose from a full list of documents and related resources.
Learn more about Scarborough's Complete Streets projects and initiatives.