AUGUSTA — The state is discontinuing its 10-year-old vanpool service for commuters as of May 1.

Michigan-based VPSI Inc. will take over about two dozen routes that 250 commuters use to get to work, said Sue Moreau, passenger services manager for the Maine Department of Transportation.

Moreau said the state’s inability to keep up with the demand for vanpool services and to replace aging vehicles led to the decision to hand the service over to a private company.

GoMaine, the DOT program that connects commuters to ride-sharing opportunities, is referring people to VPSI and will continue to connect interested commuters to a vanpool.

Moreau said the monthly fees through the private company should be comparable to the state’s fees, both of which are based on mileage. A commuter who lives in Portland and works in Augusta pays $175 a month, she said.

GoMaine’s statewide vanpool service began in 2002 with 12 vans. The program now has 27 vans. Moreau said the state hasn’t had money to replace vans, which cost about $45,000, in at least three years.

She said the vans’ useful lifespan is about five years, and more than half of them need to be replaced.

Moreau said all but two of the 12-passenger vans are at capacity and most have waiting lists of three or four people.