Cabela's Has Turnpike Exit Hopping

June 17, 2008

Cabela's has turnpike exit hopping
Traffic on the turnpike has decreased overall, but Exit 42 in Scarborough has gotten much busier.

By TESS NACELEWICZ, Staff Writer, Portland Press Hearld

Shawn Patrick Ouellette/Staff Photographer
Drivers make their way on and off the turnpike at Exit 42 in Scarborough, one of the few exits that have gotten busier.

The high cost of gas means that fewer vehicles are passing through toll plazas on the Maine Turnpike – except for the one in Scarborough near the new Cabela's store.

Traffic has decreased or remained flat at other turnpike exits, according to Dan Paradee, spokesman for the Maine Turnpike Authority.

But Exit 42 in Scarborough is handling about 2,000 more vehicles each day, an increase of more than 21 percent compared with this time last year, he said.

Turnpike officials believe the sudden increase is related to the May 15 opening of Cabela's. The 125,000-square-foot store is the first in northern New England for the Nebraska-based outdoor outfitter.

Between May 15 and June 8 last year, an average of 10,158 vehicles went through the toll plaza in Scarborough each day, Paradee said.

During the same period this year, he said, the plaza averaged 12,773 vehicles each day, an increase of 2,179 vehicles, 21.5 percent.

The Scarborough plaza stands out, he said, "because it's one of the few exits that's turning around a positive in recent history."

He credits Cabela's, noting that the toll plaza got busier right after the store opened.

Daniel Whitcher, Cabela's general manager, could not be reached for comment Monday.

The increased traffic is not creating any problems in Scarborough, according to Town Manager Ron Owens and Capt. David Grover of the Scarborough Police Department.

Both noted that Payne Road was widened with extra turning lanes to accommodate Cabela's traffic.

Owens said Cabela's seems to be an example of the adage that "if you build it, they will come – despite the gas."

Paradee said it's not clear whether the jump in traffic at the exit will continue or whether it's a temporary phenomenon because the store is new.

The exit can handle the extra traffic because it usually operates well below capacity, he said.

At Exit 36 in Saco, which handles twice as many vehicles, daily traffic fell 4.2 percent from May 15 to June 8.

The additional traffic at Exit 42 in Scarborough boosted May revenue this year by $11,806, an increase of 11.5 percent.

During that same month, overall revenue for the turnpike was down $229,774, 3.2 percent, Paradee said.

Staff Writer Tess Nacelewicz can be contacted at 791-6367