In preparation for Summerfest, Milwaukee authorities have announced plans to enhance public transit accessibility by linking The Hop’s two lines and utilizing all five cars simultaneously.

This initiative aims to facilitate transportation to the festival grounds, particularly the north gate accessible from the Couture.

Alderman Bob Bauman emphasized the necessity of managing crowds in the Third Ward while discouraging further vehicular congestion.

Parking at Summerfest will cost $40 per spot this season, with the festival scheduled to run for three consecutive weekends starting June 20th.

Read the full article here!

Public transportation for University of Wisconsin-La Crosse students, especially first-year students without access to a car, opens the opportunity to explore their new home off-campus. Special to La Crosse Municipal Transit (MTU) is the U-Pass and Safe Ride program.  

Established in 2000, the U-Pass program through MTU allows all Western Technical College, Viterbo University and UWL students free and unlimited access to city buses with a valid student ID. Under that program, MTU developed Safe Ride, or what is commonly referred to as “The Drunk Bus” by UWL students.  

The week before the start of the fall semester Safe Ride begins, operating from 10 p.m. – 3 a.m. Thursday through Saturday. The two buses circulate the route between WTC, Viterbo and UWL resulting in an approximate 15-minute wait time for passengers.  

On Friday and Saturday nights, a third bus is added. “We are trying to eliminate wait times,” said Deputy Director of Transit James Krueger (he/him). “When we add a third bus it’s about every seven minutes [of wait time].” 

Similar to the U-Pass program, riding the Safe Ride buses required no fee. However, unlike the U-Pass, passengers are not obligated to show a form of student ID.  

“This is handy if you have friends that are coming to town that are wanting to go out to eat or downtown,” said Krueger. “You can ride the bus for the Safe Ride program without that extra person having to pay a fare or anything.” 

The Safe Ride program was created to serve primarily students from the La Crosse area colleges and universities and has seen high levels of usage since its establishment in 2000. According to Krueger, 33,318 rides were completed in the calendar year of 2023 on Safe Ride buses and 31,091 on U-Pass routes. These figures reflect the program’s resurgence following the pandemic.  

Before the pandemic, Safe Ride and U-Pass saw numbers in the hundreds of thousands. “It’s rebounding,” said Krueger. “We are trying to continue to get it to grow and foster a good relationship with the university.” 

UWL advertises the Safe Ride program as a safe way to travel between downtown and campus, however, students recognize the program with a different title: “The Drunk Bus”.  

A second-year student who wished to remain anonymous said, “I am not drunk on my way down [downtown], but when I take it home after bar-close that is where the name comes from.” 

This name is not embraced by La Crosse MTU. “Whenever we hear someone say ‘The Drunk Bus,’ we kind of take that and say ‘no, no, it’s not The Drunk Bus, it’s a safe ride home’,” said Krueger.  

MTU emphasizes the safe mode of transportation the Safe Ride program provides. Third-year Student Isabella McCarron (she/her) understands their goal. “I think if we didn’t have it, it would increase drunk driving significantly,” she said.  

However, the name given to the Safe Ride program by students still resides with McCarron. “The only time I have used it was when I’ve been drunk,” she said. “I use it after bars close because there aren’t many Ubers available.” 

In 2012 UWL was ranked number one in the nation for alcohol arrests. In this same year, Safe Ride saw its highest year with 95,711 trips. The collaboration between UWL and La Crosse MTU works to ensure the safety of students amid a strong drinking culture.  

Krueger reiterated the multiple ways students can use their free bus pass. “It does offer an ease for students to get to and from work, to get to and from those places of entertainment,” he said. “Whether it’s movies or dining or anything like that, it’s a good opportunity for students.” 

The anonymous second-year student explained they are grateful for the presence of the Safe Ride program and subsequent free bus pass. “It is a great resource for students who don’t have cars,” they said. “Freshmen should still have the opportunity to go to Target.”  

The Safe Ride program will wrap up for this academic year on Saturday, May 11 and resume the Saturday before classes begin in the fall semester.

McCarron stated, “I don’t have to worry about finding a ride home and I know I am safe on the bus.” 

Read the full article here.

Across the country, municipalities and transit agencies are beginning to embrace electrification in local transportation. They’re showing that the future of transportation does not have to be just electrified cars. And thanks to the Joint Office of Energy and Transportation, there’s a new funding opportunity to help local communities go electric.

In our Smart Growth and EVs series, we outlined some of the electrifying strategies that work hand-in-hand with the existing benefits of smart growth development. Among them, we singled out e-bikes/e-micromobility, carshare, multifamily housing, curbside charging challenges, and charger-oriented development. While projects are ramping up across the country to build out the NEVI program’s new network of interstate charging stations, programs that support opportunities to walk, bike, and take public transit have often started not at the national level, but in our own backyards.

Thanks to flexible provisions in the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act, a new grant program from the Joint Office of Energy and Transportation will put $54 million in funding in communities’ hands to help pilot and expand electric mobility options through smart growth strategies. The grant will support expanded access for people who can’t charge at home (like apartment dwellers), electric fleets, and managed charging to help fill in the gaps that larger programs might be missing.

Supporting electric fleets

Fleets of all sizes move forward under this grant—and for good reason. Electrified fleets can offer big bonuses for operators. Over the last few months, transit agencies and states have had the opportunity to apply for funding to expand clean bus fleets under the Low or No Emission Bus Program. However, they’re not the only entities that could use electric fleets to decarbonize mobility. Work to innovate and expand micromobility, light duty, and medium duty fleets are all eligible for this grant—and there’s been no shortage of innovative deployments in cities and localities already.

The Washington, DC region’s Capital Bikeshare system has seen ridership explode as of late. The DC region itself is full of hills, and when it comes to protective, modern bike infrastructure, DC is falling behind its peer cities. Despite that, ridership continues to grow. In March 2024, the bikeshare system saw over 430,000 trips, up over 50 percent from the previous year and continuing a trend of record use. There’s a culprit powering the trend—of all rides, about 50 percent were on the system’s newer e-bikes. And these big ridership boosts didn’t take much; only 1 in 7 bikes in the fleet are actually electrified. As a force for equitable mobility and transportation decarbonization, e-bike shares continue to stand out as a key strategy. (And this only scratches the surface once you consider the huge potential to reduce emissions from new e-bike subsidies, like those in Colorado and other states have).

Advancing EV carshare

Some localities have partnered with nonprofits to offer electric carshare that offers low-emission mobility to those who need it most. Evie Carshare in Minneapolis-St.Paul region, and Colorado Carshare in Denver metro help undercut costly car ownership by allowing people to use EVs only when they need them. Under this grant, non-profit organizations (like Evie Carshare and Colorado Carshare) and for-profits alike would be eligible for funding to plan, pilot and deploy fleets with awards up to $4 million.

Strengthening smarter charging infrastructure

Looking forward to a future powered by renewable energy and zero-emission fleets, one challenge will be balancing energy needs against generation capacity. Even today, increased demand for electricity from both EVs and development can be too much for existing utilities in certain areas. How municipalities and utilities will coordinate to increase capacity remains an open question. Managed charging helps alleviate these issues before they happen by leveraging software and systems to ensure that vehicles get charged at times most optimal for the grid and the vehicle. This program seeks to get ahead of these issues that dense, in-demand locations are very likely to face. And for many of those people who live in multifamily housing, new projects for charging models that minimize frustrating charger queues and enable curbside charging near essential destinations could make all the difference to electrify trips. Introducing mobility wallets that hold funds people could use for any mode (from transit, e-bikeshare time or EV carshare) could streamline charging even further.

Going beyond the main funding programs for electrification (like the National Electric Vehicle Infrastructure, Charging and Fueling Infrastructure, and Low or No Emission programs) it’s a great sign that the Joint Office is still looking for ways to deliver funding where it’s still needed and could offer scalable decarbonization benefits with improvements. This is especially true when the funding opportunities play so well with smart growth strategies.

Read the full article here.

New passenger train arrivals and departures in a partnership with Minnesota, Wisconsin and Illinois

ST. PAUL, Minn., and CHICAGO – Tickets are now available for a second daily Amtrak service between the Twin Cities and Chicago, via Milwaukee: new state-sponsored Borealis trains originate from St. Paul at midday and from Chicago in the late morning. Travelers seeking a more comfortable, sustainable and productive choice than driving will have double the current rail options, starting May 21, 2024.

Amtrak Borealis coach fares start at $41 each way between St. Paul and Chicago for adults, with everyday discounts for children ages 2-12, students, seniors, veterans, military personnel and families, groups, and others.

Amtrak Borealis trains will offer Coach and Business Class in addition to a café car featuring regional items. Customers will enjoy wide reclining seats with ample legroom, no middle seats, free Wi-Fi, and views of the Mississippi River between St. Paul and La Crosse, Wisc., in daylight in both directions across Wisconsin.

The trains will make the current Empire Builder stops between St. Paul and Milwaukee and Hiawatha stops between Milwaukee and Chicago (see schedule). Another benefit of the Amtrak Borealis service is a new eastbound Amtrak origination from Ramsey County’s Union Depot in St. Paul.

“A second daily passenger rail service connecting St. Paul to Chicago via Milwaukee is a welcome addition to our transportation system, providing more choices and travel flexibility for passengers,” said Commissioner Nancy Daubenberger, Minnesota Department of Transportation. “We appreciate our partnerships with communities, federal, state and local governments, the host railroad CPKC, and Amtrak that were needed to get this service on-track, and to provide another safe, reliable transportation option. We look forward to continuing these partnerships as we work toward further building out passenger rail options in the Midwest.”

“This route includes eight stations in Wisconsin, and doubling the frequency of the service will better connect the many businesses, universities and tourist attractions along this corridor,” WisDOT Secretary Craig Thompson said. “This expansion is thanks to the work WisDOT was able to do together with Minnesota, Illinois and Amtrak, as well as the opportunities provided by the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law. We will continue to work with federal and state partners to explore more passenger rail options in Wisconsin.”

“We are proud to collaborate with neighboring states and our federal partners to offer more Amtrak service in the Midwest,” said Illinois Transportation Secretary Omer Osman. “Ensuring passenger rail that’s safe, reliable and accessible is one of the many reasons Illinois continues to distinguish itself as the transportation hub of North America under Gov. JB Pritzker.”

The new service is sponsored by the states of Minnesota, Wisconsin, and Illinois. Amtrak now operates 29 state-supported routes with 18 state partners.

“Through the Federal Railroad Administration’s Corridor Identification Program we are working with grantees on dozens of other possible new Amtrak routes,” said President Roger Harris. “Thanks to the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act, interest from state transportation departments and others for new or expanded Amtrak service across the country is at an all-time high.”

“This is a win for passenger rail expansion in America, and more importantly, it’s a win for a growing number of Americans who rely on passenger rail and benefit from it,” said Federal Railroad Administrator Amit Bose. “Investments in rail have long helped Midwesterners and the region’s economy, and this new service will mean additional access for people traveling between Minnesota, Wisconsin, and Illinois while contributing to economic growth.

“The Federal Railroad Administration applauds the strong partnership between the states and Amtrak, and through President Biden’s infrastructure package, we know even more progress is underway,” Bose added.

More Reactions:

Rep. Gwen Moore, Wisconsin

“I will always support increasing access to clean, affordable, and efficient transportation options. Improving inter-city train services in Wisconsin and across the nation brings many economic benefits. I’m excited for the job opportunities and improved tourism that an additional daily train will bring for my constituents and others traveling throughout our region, as well as the improvements to our region’s collective carbon footprint. ”

Rail Passengers Association

“There were years when it seemed as if today’s announcement would never take place, and yet here we are today celebrating a new round trip that will transform transportation in this busy corridor,” said Jim Mathews, Rail Passengers’ President & CEO. “Passenger trains mean trips that are taken off of highways and out of the sky, saving lives, limiting pollution, and opening up new possibilities. These new trains also mean new trips that would not have otherwise taken place at all, producing direct returns for the communities they serve.”

The Association produced an economic-benefits analysis in 2019 suggesting that some 60% of passengers for the new service would come from diverting automotive trips as those passengers leave their cars behind, limiting pollution, and easing congestion. The Association estimated that 90,000 people who would otherwise use personal automobiles would be taken off the roads every year, saving $32 million across the region in highway maintenance costs alone.

Read the full article here. 

City and county governments are feeling the pinch of rising operating costs but in Wisconsin, federal incentives are driving a range of local projects, taking off some of the pressure in making communities economically viable.

Dane County is no stranger to embracing clean energy and federal aid from policies like the Inflation Reduction Act and the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law are spurring more activity.

Joe Parisi, Dane County executive, said there have been past government credits for things like solar installations and the latest approach is more expansive, with a robust list of those who can benefit.

"Everybody -- a business, a nonprofit, a church, a temple, even a government, and a local government -- gets 30% back on renewable energy projects," Parisi pointed out.

For example, a local construction company put solar arrays on several of its facilities. Parisi noted the new credits speed up the pace of reimbursements, creating more energy savings in the near future. Federal officials said demand has been strong for the programs but Parisi said one challenge is creating broader awareness so under-resourced areas can apply.

Locally, the website for the Dane County Office of Energy and Climate Change has posted details about project opportunities and investments. Beyond clean energy, Parisi emphasized the federal government's push for more "Made in America" manufacturing creates opportunities for local plants and regional economies.

"There's money to help retooling to manufacture (products)," Parisi stressed. "Then, there's a stronger market for those components now because they are made in America."

National polling shows Americans are greatly concerned about things like inflation but Parisi argued long-term investments stand to help reduce operating expenses for government agencies and businesses, hopefully keeping local taxes in check and providing savings for consumers.

Read the full article here.

The Milwaukee County Transit System (MCTS) began collecting fares along the county’s first bus rapid transit route using new off-bus ticket validators Monday.

The transit system launched the Connect 1, a nine-mile bus rapid transit service that travels from Downtown to the Milwaukee Regional Medical Center in Wauwatosa, in June last year. From its launch until April 8 all rides on the Connect 1 were sponsored by Umo, the software platform that hosts the MCTS mobile app called WisGO. MCTS began charging fares on April 8.

The off-bus fare validators are the last rapid transit element of the service to fall into place. Processing fares off the bus saves time during stops, speeding up the service in aggregate.

In March, the first off-bus fare collector was installed at the Watertown Plank park-and-ride in Wauwatosa, which is a charging and turnaround point for the Connect 1’s battery electric buses. Currently there are 32 off-bus fare validators installed at stations along the route. Once the Vel R. Phillips Plaza in Downtown is developed — which will include a Connect 1 stop — there will be 34.

Riders with a WisGo card can scan the silver terminal at Connect 1 stops. Riders using cash can purchase a $2 fare from the blue ticket vending machine. The machine will also take debit or credit cards. Whether paying with a WisGo Card or a ticket, each $2 fare buys a rider 90 minutes on Connect 1.

“My advice would be to use the real time sign that’s featured above there to keep a pulse on when your Connect 1 bus would be arriving,” said Jennifer Ortega, MCTS director of business services. “That way, when it’s within two minutes or so, my recommendation would be to scan your fare media… because that way, it gives you the optimal time to use your 90 minutes worth of transfer.”

MCTS is once again sending out employees as ambassadors to help riders with the new fare system.

“We understand as MCTS, that pre-board or off-board fare collection is new for a variety of people in the public here,” Ortega said.

Read the full article here.

MILWAUKEE — With the cut of a ribbon, Milwaukee’s newest transit hub is up and running.

What You Need To Know

• The Couture Transit Center is now open in Downtown Milwaukee. 
• The Hop L-Line is now operating seven days a week. 
• MCTS's Connect 1 route will terminate at the transit center beginning in June. 

City and county officials came together Thursday to officially open the Couture Transit Concourse inside the newly developed Couture building in downtown Milwaukee.

Beginning Thursday, The Couture station will serve as the terminus for The Hop’s new L-Line, which runs through downtown and ends closer to the lake than the existing M-Line. The L-Line has officially been operating since October 2023, but only on Sundays. Now, the line will run every day of the week.

Beginning in June, Milwaukee County Transit System Connect 1 service will also end at the Couture Transit Center. That line runs west to the Milwaukee Regional Medical Center.

The opening of the new station means transit will be closer to the lakefront than in the past. During the dedication ceremony, Milwaukee Mayor Cavalier Johnson said that will help meet the transit needs of more people around the city.

“It is important to recognize the people that will use this new facility. Think about the business people, think about the festival-goers. Think about the residents who will all take advantage of this incredible destination in Milwaukee. Think about the young people who will convince their parents to go on the Hop,” said Mayor Johnson.

Some dedicated Hop enthusiasts were among the first to ride the expanded L-Line service Thursday. Mark Ward has been following The Hop from the start. As he rode on the L-Line for the first time, he said he thinks the close access to the lakefront will make a difference in encouraging people to ride.

“If you walk to the southern edge of the platform, which is maybe a 200-foot walk, walk kitty corner across the street, you are right at the Summerfest grounds. How convenient can that be?” said Ward.

The Connect 1 bus service is expected to begin using The Couture station on June 2. The route currently ends a few blocks to the north.

Read the article here.

EAU CLAIRE, Wis. (WEAU) - You can try Eau Claire Transit for free during Earth Week, April 22-27.

Funds have been donated to the city of Eau Claire from the Amalgamated Transit Union 1310, Jonah-Environmental Task Force, and Chippewa Valley Transit Alliance.

There will be three gatherings at the temporary transit center at noon with speakers throughout the week to speak to the importance of environmental awareness and how public transportation plays a big role.

April 22-State Representative Jodi Emerson and State Senator Jeff Smith

April 23-City officials Lane Berg and Ty Fadness

April 26-City Council President Emily Berge and City Manager Stephanie Hirsch

All sessions are at noon.

There is also an Earth Week Open House on Thursday, April 25 from 4-8 p.m. at The Brewing Projekt with vendors related to sustainability.

Full article here.

MENOMONIE (WQOW) - After changing some routes, the Dunn County Public Bus Transit System is taking more people across town.

In fact, 2023 marked the highest amount of bus riders on Dunn County's public transit.

The county's transit manager Austin Witt said one of the reasons is because they added a stop to the UW-Stout bus route. It now runs from the college campus to the Walmart area in north Menomonie once an hour in the evening.

"We had 126,000 riders in 2023," Witt said. "Seeing that increase and having the best year ever was great to see."

The general community route also experienced a jump.

In the past, so few people rode that route that it was more efficient to provide the rides free, since it would cost more to count the fares than what the fares brought in.

The department shortened the community route to make it an hour, and they removed a few stops. This resulted in a large increase. Monday through Friday ridership went up 62% from 2022 to 2023, and Saturday ridership went up 81% in that time.

Read the full article here.

A former mayor of New Orleans spent some time in another Mississippi River city on Wednesday, checking out the La Crosse mass transit system.

Mitch Landrieu, co-chair of President Joe Biden’s re-election campaign, was given a tour of MTU facilities on Isle La Plume — inspecting the electric busses, used by the city.

MTU director Adam Lorentz (left) speaks with Biden campaign official Mitch Landrieu (center) and La Crosse Mayor Mitch Reynolds inside a city bus on Isle La Plume (PHOTO: Brad Williams)

Landrieu, accompanied by Mayor Mitch Reynolds and others, said cities like La Crosse need funding help from Washington to afford a bus that can cost around $400,000.

“Most of the time, local transit authorities don’t have this kind of money on their own,” Landrieu told reporters at the MTU bus barn. “So it really requires the federal government” to step up with funding.

Landrieu came to La Crosse as part of a two-day Wisconsin tour promoting the Biden campaign. The president, himself, visited the MTU headquarters in June of 2021, highlighting infrastructure needs.

Landrieu said D.C. is investing heavily in local projects important to Americans.

“The infrastructure bill actually is the first time in 50 years that the federal government has taken a substantial amount of taxpayers’ dollars and put them back exactly where the taxpayer said they wanted them,” he said.

Landrieu added that the first electric buses being used in La Crosse are state of the art vehicles.

Reynolds said the bus system is important in giving city residents a way to “move about the community, so they can live their best life.”

Read the full article here!