What do you think the chances would be that the town would take over some of the burden of our road maintenance.  Possibly, simply plowing in the winter
or grading the road in the Spring.  There is a road of similar length and condition within a half mile of our Private Road that is maintained by the town of Milo.  I just feel that as a resident of the town and taxpayer, the town should be somewhat helpful.  I know it is not unprecedented for towns to aid in the maintenance of some private roads, even though the roads are not technically their responsibility. 
Just trying to get a feel if this is something worth pursuing and was wondering if anyone is in a situation where they are a part of a Statutory Road Association, and yet they still receive some services from the local township.  Thanks.

Catherine Parenteau wrote:

Derek Perkins wrote: What do you think the chances would be that the town would take over some of the burden of our road maintenance.  Possibly, simply plowing in the winter
or grading the road in the Spring.  There is a road of similar length and condition within a half mile of our Private Road that is maintained by the town of Milo.  I just feel that as a resident of the town and taxpayer, the town should be somewhat helpful.  I know it is not unprecedented for towns to aid in the maintenance of some private roads, even though the roads are not technically their responsibility. 
Just trying to get a feel if this is something worth pursuing and was wondering if anyone is in a situation where they are a part of a Statutory Road Association, and yet they still receive some services from the local township.  Thanks.

Google this - Opinion of the Justices 560A.2d 552 and you will have your answer.

I thought the text to the left, from the Maine DOT website, was well worth posting on this thread. Thanks to Catherine Parenteau for pointing it out.

Private Road Law A privately owned road, commonly called a “private road,” is a road over which neither the municipality nor the general public has the right to pass by vehicle or on foot. Anyone using or repairing a privately-owned road without the owner’s permission is subject to an action by the owner for trespass (see 14 M.R.S.A. § § 7551-A and 7552; and Hatch v. Donnell, 74 Me. 163 (1882)). In general, a municipality has no legal right to spend public funds to repair, maintain or plow privately owned roads (Opinion of the Justices, 560 A.2d 552 (Me. 1989)). In emergency cases, such as a house fire in the winter, it is legal to send a snowplow down a privately owned road so that the fire truck can get in, but the owner is responsible for ensuring that the road is sufficiently maintained to allow the plow to get through. In 2009, the Legislature modified this law to allow municipal equipment to be used on private roads that were negatively impacting the water quality of a nearby “great pond” as listed by DEP.  In 1989, the Maine Supreme Court ruled that public funds or equipment may not be used to maintain or plow privately owned roads (see Opinion of the Justices, 560 A. 2d 552 (Me. 1989)). This is true even if the public is not prevented by signs or gates from using the road. The Court’s reasoning was that the “implied consent of access” is transitory at best, and one or more of the road’s owners could at any time restrict access. For example, the municipality might make substantial repairs to a private camp road open to the public, only to find that the very next day the road was closed to public access. Therefore, the Court held that the proposed use of public funds to maintain a private road would represent an unconstitutional expenditure of public funds for a private purpose, thereby violating the “public purpose” doctrine of the Maine Constitution.

In doing alittle research, I believe that the New Hampshire state legislature allows for a town to declare a private road an 'emergency lane', only if all the residents agree to it, which in turn allows the town to provide winter snow plowing and salting services.

Any feelings on whether or not this is a good practice, does Maine have such a statute or provision for declaring a private road an 'emergency lane' (and not just a one time case during an emergency) for winter maintenance/access purposes?  If not would this be something that could possibly provide some benefit to Maine residents on a private road if the legislature were to enact such a law/policy?

It seems that most or all Maine town's have policy in place to avoid having to plow any additional private roads.  Being that there are so many people in Maine that reside on private roads, and being that having access, on a year round basis, from an emergency services standpoint is crucial for things as a public safety and service, I would hope that rather than passing the buck or brushing this responsibilty away, that Maine's legislature would be proactive or at least open to such a law that could allow benefit to so many good families and folk.