Long midcoast detour lifted for holiday weekend

A large construction detour around Route 1 in downtown Searsport will be on hiatus from Thursday evening through Tuesday morning, to accommodate the increased traffic expected through coastal Maine over the Memorial Day weekend.

The firm running the project, Gordon Contracting, announced the temporary resumption of two-way traffic on Facebook this week.

“Please take 10 minutes out of your weekend; and support local Searsport merchants,” the company said.

Gordon is leading the $17.8 million project to rebuild and improve a two-mile stretch of Route 1 through downtown Searsport, from Savage Road to Station Avenue. It launched about a year ago, and after a hiatus during the winter, it resumed again in March.

Since then, southbound drivers have had to take a five-mile detour away from the coast to get around the roadwork. While it’s going on hold this weekend, the detour is expected to continue through November, according to the Maine Department of Transportation . The whole project is expected to wrap up in June 2025.

Several businesses have reported that the ongoing construction and the single-lane traffic through downtown have hurt their operations.

Memorial Day weekend is a busy time for many businesses in the area, and at least one of them rejoiced at the news of the pause in the detour, saying it could bring in more customers.

“We were excited and relieved when we first heard,” said co-owner of local restaurant Hey Sailor!, Charlie Zorich.

Zorich and his staff anticipate this Memorial Day weekend to bring in a similar amount of business to last year’s. The detour was lifted around 4:30 p.m. Thursday, allowing vehicles to drive in both directions along Route 1.