Category Archives: Transportation

Public Hearing On Lake Parkway Extension Set For South Milwaukee

Posted on by Erik Brooks

You’ll have your chance to weigh in on the potential extension of the Lake Parkway south to Highway 100 at a public hearing and informational meeting on Wednesday, Feb. 29, at the South Milwaukee Performing Arts Center.

The meeting, which is planned from 6 to 8 p.m., specifically seeks comment on whether or not the project should be included on the regional transportation plan — a key step in actually helping this project become reality one day. It will also include a chance to view maps, ask questions and hear a presentation about recommendations from a committee studying the extension.

There are several ways to submit comments: verbally or in writing at the Feb. 29 meeting, via mail or at this SEWRPC website.

Learn more about the Lake Parkway project here on County Supervisor Pat Jursik’s website.

Jursik is chairing the Advisory Committee of the Lake Parkway Extension Study. The committee is working with the Southeastern Wisconsin Regional Planning Commission to analyze the project.

Of course, I’d like to know what you think of the extension. Post your comments below!

Drexel Avenue Construction Update

Posted on by Erik Brooks

Work will begin this spring on the new Interstate 94 interchange at Drexel Avenue — with additional work to widen Drexel to four lanes between 27th Street and the freeway beginning next month.

That’s according to this story in Oak Creek Patch. From it:

Oak Creek officials have said the expanded Drexel Avenue and new interchange will greatly help efforts to create economic development and jobs, though it will certainly be a huge change for residents in the area.

The interchange is expected to bring new development near the freeway. City officials believe it will also aid efforts to redevelop the former Delphi site, at the corner of Drexel and Howell.

It will also help South Milwaukee, providing another link to our city from I-94.

Here is more information on the West Drexel project.

New Look To South Milwaukee Bus Service: Route 15 Changes Take Effect Sunday

Posted on by Erik Brooks

The changes to Route 15 — South Milwaukee’s only bus line — take effect Sunday morning.

As you recall, a new Route 52 will replace some of the 15′s service in the South Shore, including South Milwaukee.

  • Route 52 will now operate on Pennsylvania and 15th Avenues, looping on to Rawson, 10th, Chicago, Drexel Boulevard and 17th.
  • Route 15 will continue to operate down Chicago Avenue and make a loop starting at Madison Avenue, continuing down 5th, west on Columbia and back north on Chicago.

This Milwaukee County Transit System publication describes the new routes in more detail and includes a color map. This document lists all of the new Route 15/52 bus stop locations.

You can also learn more about the system-wide changes in this Journal Sentinel story and on this MCTS web page. 

Of course, I’d like your thoughts on these changes. Post your comments below!

Report: No Hoan Bridge Bike Lane

Posted on by Erik Brooks

There won’t be a bike lane on the Hoan Bridge.

Check out The Business Journal story here. Here is the press release.

As most of my readers know, I supported the addition of a bike and pedestrian lane to the bridge — an effort, albeit costly, to go beyond the bare minimum to make the bridge truly unique and special.

Instead, we get the bare minimum. So it goes.

Maybe the powers that be will try again in 2050, or whenever the deck needs replacing again. In the meantime, I’ll continue to drive this vital link between downtown and the South Shore, wishing it could be this or this or this or this (because, yes, this is being done other places).

Updating The 794 Extension: Public Hearing Planned For February In South Milwaukee

Posted on by Erik Brooks

South Milwaukeeans, and others, can weigh in on plans to extend Highway 794 south to Highway 100 (and beyond) at a public hearing planned for Feb. 29 at the South Milwaukee Performing Arts Center.

Doors open at 6 p.m. for viewing of displays, and the presentation and public comment session starts at 6:30.

Learn more in County Supervisor Pat Jursik’s December E-Update, and in this Oak Creek patch story. Jursik is chairwoman of the Advisory Committee for the Lake Arterial Extension Study.

The Business Journal also had a recent story on the plan. Check it out here.

It’s a subscription story, so you can only read the first few paragraphs. But the accompanying map is helpful, and it shows an intersection near College and interchanges at Rawson, Drexel and Puetz.

Details Emerge On Hoan Bridge Bike Lanes … And The Debate Continues

Posted on by Erik Brooks

Nearly 300 people showed up at a public information meeting on Monday night about the proposed Hoan Bridge bike lanes.

Reaction was mixed, and some new details emerged.

Check out the Journal Sentinel story here, and, of course, I’d like to know what you think. Post your comments below!

Here is what I think: I support the addition of a bike lane to the Hoan, and spending what it takes to add it while keeping three lanes of traffic in both directions. The flow of vehicle traffic should not be compromised to accommodate cyclists.

I feel strongly that we must think big with this project and other major public works projects like it. This is a once-in-a-generation opportunity to go beyond the bare minimum — functionality, merely a way to connect point A to point B — and make the Hoan truly something special. The bike lanes help deliver on that promise. So would lights, which I proposed adding in a previous post.

Now, will most people reading this post ever walk or bike the Hoan? No. Will I? I’m not sure. But many will, and simply having that option available makes the Hoan a unique attraction of which the entire can region can boast.

We must, as a city and larger community, do a better job of seeking, and ultimately embracing, big ideas when we have a chance to do so. This is that opportunity. Seize it.

Parkway Drive/17th Avenue Project Update

Posted on by Erik Brooks

A quick update on what’s up with the sewer and road work planned for 17th Avenue and Parkway Drive …

The bulk of the project, initially set to begin this summer, will now be done next spring and completed by the end of June 2012.

You’ll recall that the project includes a variety of stormwater and sanitary sewer work, including installing and rerouting stormwater pipes in the 500 block of Parkway Drive, as well as the resurfacing of 17th Avenue from Rawson Avenue to Hemlock.

This document provides a good summary of the contemplated work and reasons for it.

Contracts for the stormwater and sanitary sewer work have been advertised and will be opened Nov. 22. Once a contractor is chosen, some off-street work and fabrication of structures needed for the work can be done over the winter. The sewer work is set for completion by May 25, according to the contract advertisement.

The roadwork will be advertised separately, with an estimated completion by the end of June — in time for Parkway and 17th to act as an alternate route during the Pennsylvania-Nicholson expansion project set to begin in July.

The delay was caused by extra review and design work necessary when the city decided to change the scope of the 17th Avenue roadwork and resurface all the way from Rawson to Hemlock, instead of the shorter length we were initially looking at.

I’ll keep you posted as this project progresses.

On Buses And Bike Lanes …

Posted on by Erik Brooks

A quick update on two transportation projects that stand to impact South Milwaukee and the entire South Shore …

First, the Wisconsin Department of Transportation has released a study its done into adding bike and pedestrian access to the Hoan Bridge. What did it find? Well, it would cost a lot … and may require reducing the number of traffic lanes from three to two.

Check out The Business Journal story here. And here is the actual report.

Also on Thursday, regional planners recommended spending $12.7 million in federal funding on four new express bus route lines in Milwaukee County — including one that would connect Mitchell International Airport to Bayshore.

With this new line will come some changes to the existing Route 15 footprint, as some of it (including the portion running through the 4th District) is replaced with a new Route 52.

Here is the Journal Sentinel story on the express bus funding. And click here for the a Milwaukee County Transit system map that shows what would happen to the 15 if the express routes become reality.

I’m interested to know what you think about both issues. Post your comments below!

What’s The Future Of The 15?

Posted on by Erik Brooks

The future of the Route 15 bus — which serves South Milwaukee — is the topic of a public information meeting several Milwaukee County supervisors are holding on Monday, Oct. 24.

Check out the press release from County Supervisor Pat Jursik here.

As I have written about, the 15 was threatened with some serious reductions in service as part of the Milwaukee County Transit System’s 2012 budget proposal. County Executive Chris Abele spared the 15 from some of those cuts in his proposed budget, creating an Express Route 15 to serve the South Shore, among other changes.

You can learn more about that new plan at the meeting.

Be Heard And Take Action: Transit Meetings Set For Sept. 13 In Cudahy

Posted on by Erik Brooks

As I’ve written about, the Milwaukee County Transit System is proposing major service cuts in 2012, including several that would directly impact South Milwaukee and the South Shore.

The biggest impact locally? The end of Route 15 in South Milwaukee and all Freeway Flyers.

Learn more about what’s planned — and share your feedback — at several community meetings presented by Transit Now, a transit advocacy group. Two are on Tuesday, Sept. 13 at the Cudahy Family Library. One meeting is from 4:30 to 5:30 p.m., and the other is from 6:30 to 7:45 p.m.

Other meetings are planned Sept. 7-8 in Brown Deer.

County Supervisor Pat Jursik, Milwaukee County Supervisor Jason Haas and Kerry Thomas, executive director of Transit Now, will present at the Cudahy meetings, which are also sponsored by The Gateway to Milwaukee, South Suburban Chamber of Commerce and the Milwaukee Aging Consortium.

The goals of both meetings?

  • Learn about the proposal to reduce and restructure Milwaukee County Transit System, including how changes could impact businesses’ access to workers and customers and individuals’ access to jobs, shopping, health care and other critical destinations.
  • Share your insights and feedback.
  • Find out ways that you can have a voice in the plan.
Learn more here.

Redefining “Service”: Historic Transit Cuts Could Significantly Impact South Milwaukee

Posted on by Erik Brooks

Significant reductions in Route 15 and the end of the South Shore Flyer are just two of the changes contained in the proposed 2012 Milwaukee County Transit System budget – a document that includes what some are calling the biggest single-year cut in transit service in the 150-year history of the system.

Looking at the proposed changes, I can’t disagree.

Here is what’s being proposed …

For starters, the proposed budget calls for the elimination of all Freeway Flyer routes, including the No. 48 South Shore Flyer, which passes through South Milwaukee and Cudahy.

Additionally, South Milwaukee would no longer be served by Route 15 as part of a significant, and complicated, “restructuring.” Among the details:

  • The South Milwaukee “loop” would disappear, with all bus service on Madison, 5th and Columbia Avenues being discontinued.
  • Service on Chicago, Packard and Kinnickinnic Avenues would now be run on an “extended” Route 51, instead of the 15 – with this service then connecting to the 15 in Bay View. This means those taking a bus from South Milwaukee to downtown South Milwaukee, for example, would have to transfer.
  • Service on 15th and 17th Avenues, as well as Pennsylvania, College and Clement Avenues, would also be reduced, as the No. 15 bus is replaced by a so-called “low frequency” Route 52 on that stretch.

Find out more details about the proposed Route 15/51 changes here. And learn more about all of the proposed cuts from this press release from Transit Now, which also includes links to an informative one-pager on the proposed cuts.

A detailed summary of the proposed MCTS budget can be found on its website.

Also, you can learn about the proposed cuts (and other budget issues) at two Milwaukee County budget listening sessions coming up this week. Both are from 5 to 7 p.m.

  • Wednesday: Kelly Senior Center, 6100 S. Lake Drive, Cudahy
  • Thursday: Washington Park Senior Center, 4420 W. Vliet St., Milwaukee

I hope you can attend and share a strong voice in favor of saving our city’s bus service. 

Our transit system, once recognized as the best in the country, is now careening toward irrelevance. And we’re watching it happen, as the death spiral of increased fares and service cuts continues.

Of course, it’s more personal this time. These changes threaten to completely cut off residents of large parts of our city from jobs, retail centers, schools and other destinations. And it threatens local employers who rely on their workers having adequate bus service to get to their jobs. In that way, this is an economic development issue.

I firmly believe that this proposed level of transit service would instantly make South Milwaukee less competitive. That’s something we should all be concerned about — whether you ride the bus or not.

Hoan Bridge Neighborhood Meeting Set For Tuesday, Aug. 23

Posted on by Erik Brooks

A variety of local and state lawmakers are hosting a “neighborhood meeting” about the upcoming Hoan Bridge reconstruction project on Tuesday, Aug. 23, on Milwaukee’s South Side.

The meeting will be held from 5 to 7 p.m. at the Beulah Brinton center cafeteria, 2555 South Bay St. in Bay View.

The focus of the meeting, according to a notice from State Sen. Chris Larson, one of the organizers, is “talking about a possible Hoan Bridge bicycle and pedestrian lane.” From Larson’s email notice:

The Wisconsin Department of Transportation (DOT) is currently studying the feasibility of creating a bicycle and pedestrian lane on the Hoan Bridge. DOT expects to complete its study sometime this fall, so now is the time to learn more about DOT’s study and make your voice heard about adding a bike and pedestrian lane to the Hoan Bridge.

Learn more about the project on the Wisconsin Department of Transportation project web page here. And this copy of the meeting notice provides a nice and easy-to-read summary of the project’s need and scope.

A Vision For The Hoan Bridge: Bike And Pedestrian Path … And Why Not Lights?

Posted on by Erik Brooks

Milwaukee County Supervisor Pat Jursik has a nice piece in the new edition of the Bay View Compass newspaper sharing her vision for the Hoan Bridge — one that includes a bike and pedestrian path.

Read it here. From it (including her thoughts on the broader harbor area):

Starting from the south shore, develop the fill area north of the Lake Express ferry terminal lot (the Confined Disposal Facility) as park space with bike rentals, ice cream stands, and other amenities. From here, a bike lane will run through Jones Island (connecting to the Oak Leaf Trail currently ending in Cupertino Park at Russell Avenue and Lincoln Memorial Drive) to the area near the Milwaukee Metropolitan Sewerage District facility.

A beautifully constructed and artistically pleasing bike ramp or spiral form will convey both pedestrians and bicyclists up to the cantilevered bridge that hangs from the arch, roughly parallel to Interstate 794. Beautiful vistas of the lake and Milwaukee skyline award the ascent with a breathtaking view of the Calatrava, Discovery World, and the Lakeshore State Park island. Cyclists and pedestrians would then pass through a fully encased trail, quite safe, and arrive on the other side of the cantilevered span at a second ramp/spiral bikecase that leads them back down to ground level on the north side of the Milwaukee River. Here, a freshly paved path skirts behind the Marcus Amphitheater and connects to the current Lakeshore State Park trail.

With the proper vision and investment, our Hoan Bridge could become the rival of the Sydney Harbour Bridge in Australia, which allows tethered pedestrians to climb on top of the bridge for a fee.

I applaud Pat for thinking big when it comes to the Hoan and the harbor. And I agree with her sentiments. But I’d like to add another element to that vision: lights. I think the Hoan Bridge arch should be lit at night.

Of course, this is purely a cosmetic upgrade, and I am sure it won’t be cheap, but I think the benefits are real. Lighting the bridge would add significantly to Milwaukee’s skyline and make the bridge a real conversation piece among residents and visitors.

Think New York, Boston, even Muscatine, Iowa, and our own Sixth Street Viaduct. Or this unknown location. I hope the Hoan can join that list.

And with advances in lighting technology (LEDs, etc.) I am betting it can be done more cost effectively now than it ever could in years past.

What do you think of the idea? Post your comments below! (And vote in my new poll.)

South Shore Lifeline: Ensuring the Future of the Hoan

Posted on by Erik Brooks

Update: Check out a draft of the Hoan Bridge inspection report here.

The one-time Bridge to Nowhere will be the Bridge to Somewhere for decades to come. And that’s great news for South Milwaukee.

State officials on Saturday announced a potentially $350 million project that calls for redecking the bridge, stuctural modifications, repainting the bridge deck and other upgrades.

Check out the full story in the Journal Sentinel here. From it:

Plans are to focus on three segments of I-794.

The Hoan Bridge will be rehabilitated between Lincoln Ave. at the south and the Lake Interchange at the north. The project calls for the removal and replacement of the existing bridge deck, structural modifications, as well as repainting the bridge steel.

Concrete work and surface repairs on existing structures will be made at the Lake Interchange.

Old bridges will be removed and replaced with new structures on I-794 east/west between the Milwaukee River and N. Milwaukee St.

“This is a long-term repair,” said Mark Gottlieb, secretary of the Wisconsin Department of Transportation. “When we’re all done here we anticipate a useful life of the deck and the structure for 40 to 50 years for the Hoan Bridge.”

My reaction? As someone who takes the Hoan Bridge to and from work everyday, I’m glad to finally see a decision made on the future of this vital link between the South Shore and downtown.

As I’ve written about, I have always been in favor of studying all options for the future of the bridge — supportive of making sure that the state was making an informed decision about what’s best for this road before we, as taxpayers, spend hundreds of millions of dollars on fixing it.

I had been a bit concerned that the rhetoric in this debate was getting ahead of the facts.

Well, I am confident that due diligence has been done, and the end result will absolutely deliver on the only imperative in my mind since this discussion started: that a quick and seamless connection from the South Shore be maintained, even enhanced.

As South Shore Supervisor Pat Jursik put it in the story linked above: “The south side is the place to be.”

I can’t agree more!

Short-Term Fix: $7 Million in Hoan Bridge Work Underway

Posted on by Erik Brooks

If you, as I do, drive the Hoan Bridge with any regularity, you know full well that the road is a mess.

The stretch as you leave the Lake Parkway heading north toward downtown is particularly bad and seemingly has been for years.

Thankfully, that will change over the next eight months, as $7 million in improvements ramp up on this vital connection between the South Shore and downtown.

Check out the Journal Sentinel story here.

Of course, this is only a temporary fix. I have expressed support in the past for at least considering options about the long-term term future of the Hoan, and I’m glad to see that a detailed engineering inspection seems to be nearing completion.

I think it’s only right that we have all the facts before deciding if spending potentially hundreds of millions of dollars on redecking is the best course. It mostly likely is, and I would support it if it is, but I want to be sure. This study will provide that certainty.