Some gains for transportation projects
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June 5, 2008
Southeastern Wisconsin should connect to Chicago every way it can
EDITORIAL

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As the price of gas has risen to a point that more people are interested
in mass transit, there have been some positive developments for area
transportation projects.

First, a couple weeks ago the city of Kenosha received a $4 million
grant to start design and engineering work on an expansion of the
streetcar system from downtown to the Uptown neighborhood.

The money comes from a federal Congestion Mitigation and Air Quality
fund grant that is distributed by the state Department of
Transportation. Also receiving funds from the same federal pot was the
Kenosha-Racine-Milwaukee commuter rail system, which was awarded $6
million to upgrade tracks.

Both the expansion of the Kenosha street car system and the KRM commuter
rail are just plans on paper at this point. The city is hoping for
federal grants to also cover most of the rest of the $16 million
streetcar expansion project, and the route isn't even mapped yet.
Nevertheless, the grant will help the city get the project started.
Kenosha Area Transit Director Len Bandrup has promised there will be
plenty of opportunity for public input in planning the project.

The KRM line, a $200 million project, has been stalled because of lack
of agreement on a funding source. The last plan to fund it, a tax on car
rentals, failed to gain the state Legislature's approval.
Another related project, one that is much farther along, also made
progress last week when federal transportation officials approved the
widening of I-94 from six lanes to eight between Milwaukee and the
Illinois border. Work on rebuilding and widening the road could start
next year. It's a $1.9 billion project if the road is widened to eight
lanes, $1.7 billion if it is rebuilt at the present six-lane width.

That difference in price, $200 million, caused some controversy recently
when Milwaukee Mayor Tom Barret suggested the road remain at six lanes
wide and the difference be diverted to mass transit. We have also noted
that the difference in price between a six-lane and an eight-lane
roadway is sufficient to build the KRM line, but we think both projects
are worthy investments.

The better the transportation connections between southeastern Wisconsin
and Chicago, the better off southeastern Wisconsin is going to be.

Transportation planners should look at Chicago and its suburbs as a
milkshake of money, jobs and talent. The more straws Wisconsin sticks
into the milkshake, the more good stuff we'll get.

Roads, commuter rail systems and streetcars are all expensive, but they
are projects that draw high levels of federal support, and they'll pay
long-term dividends. Except perhaps for education, we don't see better
investments for economic development.






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