Metro Ride looking to expand outside of Wausau
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The City of Wausau purchased the bus system from a private company in 1972
By Brianna Weaver
Published: Oct. 4, 2024 at 6:54 PM CDT
WAUSAU, Wis. (WSAW) - The public transit system in Wausau could be expanding to include Rothschild, Schofield, and Weston. While the idea is there, they do have a long way to go before that could happen.
The City of Wausau purchased the Metro Ride system in 1972 from a private company after a referendum. More than 50 years later, talks of adding lines to surrounding areas are finally here, but the process to do that depends on the wants and needs of the municipality.
“If they would like public transportation to go out into their neighborhoods and service the public that way, we’re more than willing to help them do that,” said Arran Hersey, the transit director for the City of Wausau Metro Ride.
If it’s just specific businesses, Hersey says they’re also able to do that.
He’s currently working on a presentation to talk with city leaders about the importance of the routes. This would touch on why expanding in those areas would be good, especially for mobility purposes.
“People are gonna stop being able to drive necessarily and gonna be relying on public transportation to get to medical appointments, to get to shopping just to get to community events,” said Hersey.
So far these presentations will only be to the leaders, but Hersey is more than happy to show it to the public if they’re okay with it.
“I’m willing to go to any town hall meeting for any of the other cities, ask any questions that they may have, and do my best to answer them. I could bring some of my other experts along that know the area better than I do,” said Hersey.
The busiest time of the day for the Wausau transit center is after school. Hersey says if they do expand, he hopes to work with the school systems in other areas to provide that same support.
“We supplement what the yellow school bus can’t do at this particular point in time in the Wausau area,” said Hersey.
Hersey adds that he hopes the city leaders hop aboard the expansion plan and help the local communities.
