"Walking, Cycling, Public Transport and EVs will create a significant economic opportunity for the Western Foothills region."

The rural nature of our region has lead to the development of a transportation system that is nearly entirely reliant on private vehicles fueled by gasoline. We have seen before how vulnerable our economy is to sharp increases in the price of gas. It is just a matter of time before those prices spike again. What will it look like when gasoline costs five, or ten dollars per gallon? Before we find out, we can develop a new transportation infrastructure based on walking, cycling, and efficient, affordable public transportation. Roads need to be built and maintained with the safety of pedestrians and bicycles in mind, as well as the accommodation of a new generation of lightweight electric and hybrid vehicles. A network of pedestrian and bicycle trails integrated with innovative regional public transportation will serve our lower income rural residents and help to revitalize our downtown communities. The development of a pioneering, forward thinking transportation system is a significant economic opportunity for the Western Foothills region and another step toward regional self reliance and reducing our emissions of greenhouse gases.

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Current Projects

EV Ambassadors

As the western Maine chapter of Drive Electric Maine, our EV Ambassadors program serves the EV-curious who want a local's perspective before going shopping. Sign up to be an EV Ambassador here, or if you're EV-curious and would like to be paired with an Ambassador driving something similar to what you're considering, reach out to driveelectric(at)ecologybasedeconomy(dot)org.

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Western Maine EV Charging Network

We maintain 28 public EV chargers across western Maine, allowing locals and visitors alike to feel confident they can get where they want to go! Our network offered some of the first publicly-available charging in the region, and has grown with the increase in EVs on the road. 

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Community BikeShare

During warmer seasons, we offer free-to-use bikes for those 18 and over from the community rack in front of our Center on Main Street. Stop by during our open hours to sign up to ride!

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Past Projects

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Spoke Folks

Spoke Folks was a worker-owned cooperative that hauled trash, compost and recycling with bike power and people power! CEBE helped incubate and launch Spoke Folks in 2020, with assistance from the Cooperative Development Institute. Spoke Folks operated until 2025.