Wisconsin
Highway Boondoggles: I-94 Expansion in Wisconsin
The highway widening will cost up to $1.9 billion. It is part of an insanely generous package of giveaways to lure electronics manufacturer Foxconn to Wisconsin.
June 29, 2018
Highlighting the Inequity of Access to Good Bicycling Infrastructure in Milwaukee
A new report from Rails-to-Trails Conservancy spotlights how disadvantaged neighborhoods in Milwaukee have less access to safe bicycle routes than other parts of the city.
June 29, 2017
Milwaukee Street Safety Advocates Make Their Case With Reports for Each Council District
One of the most effective ways to get elected officials to pay attention to traffic safety is to spell out the dangers in their own districts. A new effort from a coalition in Milwaukee does just that, crafting reports for each of the city's 15 aldermanic districts on the eve of the Wisconsin Bike Summit.
May 4, 2017
Wisconsin Highway Costs Exceed State DOT Estimates By Nearly 100%
Highway costs have nearly doubled WisDOT's projections, and the overruns will be even bigger for projects that are still in the works. But Governor Scott Walker isn't interested in reining in highway spending.
January 27, 2017
Scott Walker’s Own Party Rejects His Milwaukee Highway Boondoggle
Governor Scott Walker might be too busy campaigning for president to care, but the Wisconsin legislature handed him a rebuke last week, rejecting his plans for debt-fueled highway expansion.
July 6, 2015
Calculating the Big Impact of Sprawl on Cities’ Bottom Line
When someone builds a new home, does it make the city stronger and more fiscally sound? Or does it drain public resources? The answer depends a lot on where it's sited and, more specifically, where it lies in relation to other homes and businesses.
April 8, 2015
Wisconsin Dumps One Urban Highway Boondoggle in Favor of Another
One of the nation's most poorly conceived highway proposals will become slightly less ridiculous. Transportation officials in Wisconsin recently announced they will no longer consider double-decking a portion of Interstate 94 in Milwaukee. The billion-dollar project would have raised the highway to building height in the Story Hill neighborhood.
February 19, 2015
What the Results of 8 Governors’ Races Mean for Cities and Transit
Yesterday's elections returned some of the nation's most anti-urban, anti-transit governors to power in races where they were supposed to be vulnerable. Pro-transit candidates were unexpectedly routed in some states, though a few did manage to hang on.
November 5, 2014
WisDOT Falls Back on Old Data to Justify Double-Decker Urban Highway
U.S. PIRG and the Frontier Group released a report yesterday, "Highway Boondoggles: Wasted Money and America’s Transportation Future." In it, they examine 11 of the most wasteful, least justifiable road projects underway in America right now.
September 19, 2014
Wisconsin’s Highway Spending Mania Makes Less Sense Every Day
Wisconsin isn't known as a state that makes smart use of transportation dollars, whether it’s Scott Walker rejecting federal funds for high-speed rail service, denying funds for what would have been Milwaukee’s first suburban commuter rail service, or cutting millions in state aid for transit. Now a new report from the Wisconsin Public Interest Research Group (WISPIRG) sheds makes it perfectly clear just how imbalanced the state’s transportation funding priorities have gotten [PDF].
September 10, 2014