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February 26, 2014 by

Route 55 may be extended

Next Wednesday the Milwaukee County Board’s Transit Committee will be considering a proposal to extend Route 55 Layton Avenue.

Route 55 currently runs between Warnimont Park (Lake Drive) to Southridge (76th St). If extended, Route 55 will run west to the Hales Corners Park & Ride Lot near 108th/Layton and connect with Routes 28, 43 and 44U while still serving Southridge. MAP

In addition to these new connections, Route 55 would also serve a 32-block section of Layton Avenue that currently has no bus service but is home to several businesses, a Social Security Administration office and Layton Terrace.

This could be a significant development for transit riders on the southwest side and fill a large gap in the Milwaukee County Transit System’s service area. There is currently no east-west connection on Routes 28 and 44U south of Oklahoma Avenue.

If the proposed route extension is passed, it could be implemented for the Summer 2014 pick (schedule Effective Date June 8, 2014).

The county board transit committee can be encouraged to pass this route expansion by contacting them at http://county.milwaukee.gov/TPWT/ContactTPWT.htm.

Filed Under: News
February 26, 2014 by

Review Committee Decision Good for Transit Riders

MILWAUKEE, WI — The Milwaukee Transit Riders Union applauds the Administrative Determination Review Committee of the Milwaukee County Board for dismissing the proposal to turn the management of the Milwaukee County Transit System over to MV Transportation.

“MV Transportation has a questionable track record managing transit systems far smaller than the Milwaukee County Transit System.” said organizer Nick DeMarsh “There is no reason to believe that MV would have been up to the task of running a system as large as MCTS. It is far more likely that service quality and reliability would have suffered. We need only look at MV’s mismanagement in Fairfield, CA where MV was cited 295 times in 2010 alone for poor performance.”

While we agree that MCTS needs to improve, the obvious first step would be establishing dedicated funding to solve the long-term funding problems that have forced MCTS to cut approximately one-third of bus service since 2000, making over 40,000 jobs inaccessible to transit dependent Milwaukee County residents.

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Filed Under: Press Releases
February 26, 2014 by

County committee stops MV takeover

The Milwaukee County Board’s Administrative Determination Review Committee stopped the deal struck with MV Transportation to manage the Milwaukee County Transit System.

In it’s decision the commitee determined that the process was so flawed that no contract award could be made.

Bus riders may have dodged a bullet, as it turns out that MV Transportation is putting itself up for sale.

Filed Under: News
February 17, 2014 by

Long Wait Times Leave Transit Riders Out In The Cold

MILWAUKEE, WI — With this year’s record cold temperatures, transit riders have been forced to brave the cold while waiting for the bus. In Milwaukee, where transit service has decreased by one third since 2000, riders have found themselves waiting significantly longer than they did years ago.

While Milwaukee’s service has dwindled significantly, other cities manage to continue to provide robust service for riders. The Minneapolis Metro Transit System provided nearly twice as much service as MCTS in 2012. Nick DeMarsh, an organizer with the Milwaukee Transit Riders Union explains, “While this difference in service levels is an embarrassment for our community and is a drag on our economy, most importantly it has a significant impact on the day to day lives of transit riders.”

Transit advocates in Milwaukee are concerned about the health of riders in this brutal cold. Kieth Crum, fellow transit organizer says “With numerous wind-chill advisories and warnings this winter, State and County leadership can no longer ignore the suffering of transit riders.” To address this issue he explains, “We would like to see funding for more frequent trips, more bus shelters and heated shelters at key locations in addition to other possible improvements.”

While there’s a lot of talk about who will run the system, the key is really whether or not the community is willing to stand up and fund the system. The Texas based MV Transportation Inc., has submitted a low ball proposal to manage MCTS, which has raised a lot of questions about how they could afford to operate with their proposed budget. County Executive Abele has recently suggested that MV may have to cut drivers’ pay in order to save costs. This will likely affect bus reliability and safety of riders, as seen in Fairfield, CA where MV was cited 295 times for poor performance. DeMarsh concludes “There’s no gimmick to fixing our system, it’s a matter of whether or not State and County leaders care about riders.”

Transit advocates will reach out to riders Wednesday February 19th from 8:30am – 10:00am along West Wisconsin Avenue to hear testimonies of how long wait times have affected riders this winter.

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Filed Under: Press Releases
January 7, 2014 by

US Attorney reviewing Southridge bus stop removal

The U.S. Attorney is reviewing the removal of the Southridge bus stop for possible violations of the Americans with Disabilities Act.

Southridge ordered the transit system to change the stop to the new location effective November 1, 2013, claiming that they were looking out for bus riders’ safety. However there are several problems with their story:

  • Southridge management first moved the stop away from the mall entrance near Sears in 2012. Since the temporary Southridge bus stop they came up with was so unsafe, why not simply move the stop back to its former location near the Sears entrance?
  • Removing the stop from the main mall entirely and forcing bus riders to cross a parking lot  seems to be substantially less safe.

This illustration shows how moving the bus stop has made bus riders substantially less safe. (Click to enlarge)

SouthridgeBusStops

As bad as this is for all bus riders, it is even worse for persons with disabilities. When this change was announced by Southridge, we were concerned that this would be a problem for persons with disabilities and that is exactly how this has turned out.

We are happy that this is being pursued and will continue to keep you informed of any updates.

Filed Under: News
January 5, 2014 by

Buses will run Monday

It will be getting cold tomorrow, with wind chills getting as low as -50° F. The National Weather Service has issued a Wind Chill Warning for the Milwaukee area. It will be so cold that MPS has announced that there will be no school on Monday and maybe Tuesday. The City and the County have announced that most services will be shut down.

The Milwaukee County Transit System has announced that buses will be running on Monday, except for school routes like RR1–RR3 (Reagan), RS1–RS4 (Riverside), #50, #85, #87, #88 & #89.

Remember that buses might break down in the cold, so be prepared to wait. Postponing trips until it warms up works too.

If you have to go out, MCTS has some safety tips for you.

Stay warm!

Filed Under: News
January 5, 2014 by

County transit contract given to worst performer, appeal says

Milwaukee Transport Services, the non-profit that currently manages the Milwaukee County Transit System, has filed an appeal to the decision to award the management contract to the Dallas, TX based for-profit corporation MV Transportation. This appeal is connected to the lawsuit filed challenging the decision.

The appeal revealed that MV Transportation actually received the lowest technical score, meaning that MV got the lowest score on the portion of its bid describing how it would provide the actual bus services to riders. That section of the evaluation was supposed to count for 80% of the total score used to determine which company would be awarded the contract.

This shows a complete disregard for bus riders. Despite claims by the County that it was trying to improve the bus system by turning over operations to a private corporation, we have seen from the actions of this panel that this was not the intention.

The entire justification for awarding the bid to MV Transpotation seems to revolve around cost. MV has given a the County a low-ball offer for administrative costs.

ProviderAdministrative Price
US Average for Similar Transit SystemsAbout 18% of total budget.
Milwaukee Transport ServicesAbout 14% of total budget.
MV TransportationAbout 4% of total budget.

The County did not compare the proposals with the actual figures from similar bus systems to MCTS. A comparison shows that Milwaukee is already has one of the lowest administrative costs and that MV’s offer is probably “too good to be true”.

ProviderAdministrative Costs
Minneapolis (Metro)13.56% of total budget.
Milwaukee (MCTS)13.86% of total budget.
Pittsburgh (Port Authority)13.92% of total budget.
Kansas City (KCATA)15.89% of total budget.
Cincinnati (Metro)16.31% of total budget.
Louisville (TARC)16.38% of total budget.
St. Louis (Metro)17.06% of total budget.
Columbus (COTA)17.30% of total budget.
Cleveland (GCRTA)19.14% of total budget.
Indianapolis (IndyGo)19.36% of total budget.
Detroit (DDOT)19.71% of total budget.
Alameda (AC Transit)20.97% of total budget.
Providence (RIPTA)22.43% of total budget.
Denver (RTD)22.44% of total budget.
US Average for Similar Transit Systems17.74% of total budget.
MV Transportation4.03% of total budget.

MV Transportation did not disclose how they came up with this extremely low figure. We believe that this is cause for concern and something that should be looked into.

There is an Administrative Determination Review Committee that is looking over the decision to transfer the operations of the transit system to MV Transportation. The committee was scheduled to meet Tuesday, but that has been cancelled due to the extreme cold weather.

Filed Under: 2013 Profitization of MCTS
December 27, 2013 by

Waukesha cuts bus service again

In another blow to regional transportation, Waukesha has opted to reduce service on all but two Waukesha Metro routes. This sweeping reduction in service comes at the same time that there is strong support for expanding transit in the region.

The changes will take effect Thursday January 2, 2014.

  • Route 1
    – Saturday service hours shortened. (Last trip eliminated.)
    – Sunday service hours shortened. (First westbound and last eastbound trips eliminated.)
  • Route 2 will not be affected in this round of cuts. Route 2 was shortened in a separate reduction that took place in summer.
  • Route 3
    – Weekday service hours shortened. (Service will end at 7:12pm)
  • Route 3/15
    – New route will replace Saturday service on Waukesha #3 & #15.
    – Saturday service hours shortened. (Service will end at 6:47pm instead of 9:47pm on present #3.)
  • Route 4
    – Saturday service hours shortened. (Last trip eliminated.)
  • Route 5 will turn around at the Shoppes of Fox River. It will no longer run to Fox Run and Badger Drive.
  • Route 5/6
    – Weekday evening service is eliminated.
    – Eliminated all service south of Sunset Drive.
    – Alternating trips will run to the Waukesha Food Pantry.
    – Saturday service hours shortened. (Last trip eliminated.)
  • Route 6 will no longer run to Waukesha West High School all day. Service will be reduced to 2 AM trips and 2 PM trips. Route 6 will travel to Badger Drive.
  • Route 7
    – Weekday evening service eliminated and replaced by Route 7/8.
    – Saturday service eliminated and replaced by Route 7/8.
  • Route 8
    – Weekday evening service eliminated and replaced by Route 7/8.
    – Saturday service eliminated and replaced by Route 7/8.
  • Route 9
    – The last northbound Weekday trip (9:12pm) has been eliminated.
    – The last northbound Saturday trip (6:50pm) has been eliminated.
  • Route 15
    – Pearl/Commerce loop eliminated.
    – Will run on Sunset between Tenny and Gramling.
    – Saturday service will be eliminated. A new Route 3/15 will replace Saturday service on Routes 3 & 15.
  • Route 16 will not be affected. (Rt. 16 runs two trips Weekdays only.)
Filed Under: News
December 20, 2013 by

New study looks at ways to connect Milwaukee with jobs in the suburbs

The Public Policy Forum has released a report about the lack of bus service to suburban job centers, how to fix this problem and the challenges that are holding us back.

The report focused on three potential routes that would connect Milwaukee to suburban job hubs.

  • 10X (Brookfield Square to UWM via Downtown)
  • 80X (Woodcreek/Puetz to MATC Mequon)
  • 351 (108th/Cleveland to Westridge Business Park in New Berlin)

The report also outlined many of the challenges facing transit advocates and government officials who want to connect Milwaukee with jobs. Among the largest concerns was that of funding.

We encourage anyone who wants to find out more to go ahead and read the report. It is packed with information, but is still a very easy read.

Filed Under: News
December 2, 2013 by

Come to the December meeting!

[civicrm component=”event” id=”1″ action=”info” mode=”live”]

Filed Under: MTRU Meeting Notices
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