by jboullion | Nov 19, 2009 | Uncategorized
From an article by Steve Cahalan in the La Crosse Tribune:
The final version of a Wisconsin Department of Transportation long-range plan still has alternate routes through Eau Claire and La Crosse for high-speed passenger rail service between Tomah and the Twin Cities.
The DOT soon will study which route might be best.
The agency said Wednesday it has formally adopted its new Connections 2030 long-range plan, available online at www.wiconnections2030.gov.
Local business and government leaders argued at an Aug. 26 public hearing on the plan in La Crosse that studies years ago already had determined Amtrak’s Empire Builder route is the most ideal in the region for planned high-speed passenger rail service between Chicago and St. Paul. That route goes through Tomah and La Crosse, as well as Winona and Red Wing in Minnesota.
Backers of that route announced last week they have formed the Empire Builder High Speed Rail Coalition.
Coalition members remain convinced that is the best route, said the group’s coordinator, James Hill, who also is executive director of the La Crosse Area Development Corp.
by jboullion | Nov 19, 2009 | Uncategorized
From an article by Steve Cahalan in the La Crosse Tribune:
The final version of a Wisconsin Department of Transportation long-range plan still has alternate routes through Eau Claire and La Crosse for high-speed passenger rail service between Tomah and the Twin Cities.
The DOT soon will study which route might be best.
The agency said Wednesday it has formally adopted its new Connections 2030 long-range plan, available online at www.wiconnections2030.gov.
Local business and government leaders argued at an Aug. 26 public hearing on the plan in La Crosse that studies years ago already had determined Amtrak’s Empire Builder route is the most ideal in the region for planned high-speed passenger rail service between Chicago and St. Paul. That route goes through Tomah and La Crosse, as well as Winona and Red Wing in Minnesota.
Backers of that route announced last week they have formed the Empire Builder High Speed Rail Coalition.
Coalition members remain convinced that is the best route, said the group’s coordinator, James Hill, who also is executive director of the La Crosse Area Development Corp.
by jboullion | Oct 27, 2009 | Uncategorized
From the Southeastern Wisconsin Regionial Planning Commission:
The public is invited to attend one of three upcoming public informational meetings for the Racine County Public Transit Plan. At the meetings, you can learn more about the plan, discuss it with Commission staff, and comment on the work performed to date. The meetings will be in an “open house” format, allowing you to attend at any time during the two-hour timeframe:
+ Tuesday, October 27, 2009, 4:30-6:30 p.m.
Racine Railroad Depot
1409 State Street
Racine
+Wednesday, October 28, 2009, 4:30-6:30 p.m.
Burlington Town Hall
32288 Bushnell Road
Burlington
+Wednesday, November 4, 2009, 5:00-7:00 p.m.
Auditorium, Ives Grove Office Complex
14200 Washington Avenue
Sturtevant
More details here.
by jboullion | Oct 9, 2009 | Uncategorized
From an article by Christine Won in the Racine Journal Times:
RACINE – Bernie Hoff, 59, of Racine, said she and her family enjoyed the comforts of commuter rail when they were living in a Chicago suburb 24 years ago before they moved to Racine.
“We saw commuter rail is such an asset to the area,” said Hoff, who was at a transit forum Wednesday night. “We can’t understand why they don’t have it here.”
More than 130 people attended the community forum “Tapping into Transit as a Game-Changer” Wednesday night at the DeKoven Center, 600 21st St. The forum, hosted by Racine Transit Task Force and Transit NOW, highlighted the benefits of public transit and specifics of the Kenosha-Racine-Milwaukee commuter rail project. The Task Force is a group working to improve transit for Racine.
Different community leaders appealed on the behalf of the community, businesses, labor unions and students for a public transit system.
Mayor John Dickert, one of the speakers, stressed the importance for interconnectivity of commuter rail, high-speed rail and buses to work together to move Racine forward. He addressed concerns about how much the commuter rail project would cost and pointed out putting in another lane in I-94 is costing $1 billion.
by jboullion | Sep 23, 2009 | Uncategorized
From an article by Joe Potente in the Kenosha News:
MILWAUKEE — A summit on regional transit sounded something like a pep rally for public transportation by the time it wrapped up Friday.
A panel of transit backers from Kenosha, Racine and Milwaukee didn’t agree entirely on the viability of commuter rail in the region, but they were united on one major point: Now is the time to pass legislation to create a true regional transit authority with a dedicated sales tax.
And a national expert on transit and urban sustainability said that authority must be taken seriously in order for anything to get done.
Panelist Eric Isbister was blunt. Isbister said a lack of public transit near his Mequon-based business shuts his company off from many car-less members of an enormous workforce a few miles south in Milwaukee.
“We’ve got to stop romancing this issue,” said Isbister, chief executive officer of General MetalWorks Corp., a Mequon-based metal fabrication firm. “We’ve got to get results.”
Said Deborah Blanks, chief executive officer of the Milwaukee Social Development Commission: “It’s about access and opportunity. It’s a connector to prosperity.”
The summit, at the Italian Conference Center, was presented by the Urban Economic Development Association of Wisconsin, the Greater Milwaukee Committee and the city of Milwaukee.
