Walker’s BRT Plan: consolidate Rts 18 & 23

Scott Walker has been touting express buses as an alternative to rail transit. His plan has  been released, and you can download it here. ()

It is important to note that this express route will replace, not supplement local service.  Under this plan, the existing routes 18 & 23 will be replaced by a gigantic route called  Route 18/23X, that will run between 60th & Congress & Fond du Lac and 67th & Greenfield.  The new route will only stop at transfer points. The problem with this is that local service is not  being preserved, so people who live in these neighborhoods will have no choice but to walk  further to get to bus stops.

Businesses are also going to be impacted by this drastic route modification, for example:  those who use the bus to go to the grocery store will have to walk several blocks with their  bags, since both the Lena’s on Fond du Lac, and the Pick & Save on National will no longer  have bus stops.

It’s also questionable whether this will save anyone any time at all. People going to work on  the northwest side will have to get off the bus at 60th & Congress and wait for another bus.  People on the south side will have to get off at 67th & Greenfield to wait for another bus as  well. So any time saved on the bus trip will be lost by having to wait for another bus just to  continue traveling west from these areas. And that’s assuming that the county follows through  on creating the shuttles that will replace the western portions of Routes 18 & 23.

Another concern we have is that this plan does not do anything to solve the bus-bunching and  over-crowding  problems on both of these routes. Wait times will remain the same, and with  local neighborhood riders sharing the same bus as people going further distances it’s likely  that these buses will be just as overcrowded as the current Routes 18 & 23, and much less  reliable since this route is so long and the layovers are so far apart.

The county is applying for a grant from the federal government in Spring to implement  this plan. We need the County to know that these neighborhoods and their people matter,  and that any plans for express bus service should not shortchange local transit and the  people who need it most.

You can call the county’s switchboard at (414) 278-4222

You can also visit the County Transit (TPWT) Committee’s web page at:  http://www.county.milwaukee.gov/TransportationPublic21939.htm

Find out who your county supervisor is, and how to contact him or her at: