Transportation

Our nation’s highways and bridges are essential for a strong economy and it is imperative that we provide funding to ensure they are properly maintained. Further, with the economic downturn, providing robust funding for transportation and infrastructure projects have been and will be vital in creating jobs for western Wisconsin.    

Recovery Act

Congress and President Obama made an important step in improving our infrastructure through the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009. A critical component of the Recovery Act was $111 billion devoted to rebuilding our aging roads, highways, and bridges, including $9 billion to build new high speed passenger rail.

As part of this bill, Wisconsin received $810 million to build high-speed passenger rail service between Milwaukee and Madison and $12 million to install crossovers between Chicago and Milwaukee to improve service on this highly-popular route. The project is estimated to create thousands of jobs in Wisconsin in fields like construction, engineering, design and supply firms.

In addition to Wisconsin’s funding, the Minnesota Department of Transportation has received $1 million to begin a planning study on building high-speed passenger rail linking Wisconsin and the Twin Cities. This study will examine proposed routes through several areas of western Wisconsin.

Important Links

Recovery.gov

Impact of American Recovery and Reinvestment Act on Wisconsin

Wisconsin Office of Recovery and Reinvestment

Advocating for Transportation Programs

As you may know, President Obama signed into law the Hiring Incentives to Restore Employees (HIRE) Act, P.L. 111-147, which not only will create and save more American jobs, but also will provide an extension of the surface transportation programs – strengthening the Highway Trust Fund through December 31, 2010.      

The highway and transit programs have been operating under a series of short-term extensions since the Safe, Accountable, Flexible, Efficient Transportation Equity Act (SAFETEA-LU) expired at the end of September 2009. These interim measures have distributed surface transportation funds in piecemeal fashion and at a reduced allotment of spending authority than was provided to states in Fiscal Year 2009. This situation has created uncertainty for state transportation programs that are already facing major challenges. I will to continue advocating for important transportation projects in western Wisconsin. As the debate over transportation funding continues, I will be sure to keep your thoughts and concerns in mind.

While Congress has temporarily extended our federal Surface Transportation Programs, there is still a need for a long-term reauthorization that lays out how we should prioritize the construction and maintenance of our federal highways, the interstate system, and high-speed rail corridors.

As part of this process, I forwarded nine requests from the Wisconsin Department of Transportation (WisDOT) to the Transportation and Infrastructure Committee. These requests, listed below, were identified by WisDOT as being critically important to state transportation needs. Further, I believe these high priority projects will create quality jobs now and ensure Wisconsin is economically competitive in the long-run.

WisDOT’s Western Wisconsin High Priority Projects

Preliminary engineering for the Madison-Twin Cities High Speed Passenger Line

• $32.3 million for the planning, environmental documentation, preliminary engineering and design of the high speed railway between Madison and the Twin Cities.

Construction of the Madison-Twin Cities High Speed Passenger Line

• $560 million for the construction of the rail line and the acquisition of train equipment for high speed service between Madison and the Twin Cities.

Rehabilitation of I-94 in Eau Claire County, Wisconsin

• •$86.5 million to rehabilitate I-94 pavement and bridges along a 38-mile corridor in Eau Claire County.

Replacement of the Stillwater Bridge near Somerset, Wisconsin

• $234 million to construct a new four-lane highway bridge across the St. Croix River near Stillwater, Minnesota.

Replacement of I-90 Structures across the Mississippi River near La Crosse, Wisconsin

• $62.5 million to replace I-90 structures across the Mississippi River, as well as the approach work in Wisconsin.

Reconstruction of USH 14 between Westby and Viroqua

• $15.5 million to expand and reconstruct USH 14 from Westby to Viroqua, including constructing a multi-use path and safety improvements.

Replacement of aging buses for Eau Claire, Wisconsin

• $3 million to acquire new fuel efficient, ADA-compliant buses for the Eau Claire Transit System. Current buses have reached or exceeded their useful life as defined by the Federal Transit Administration.

Replacement of aging buses for La Crosse, Wisconsin

• $3 million to acquire new fuel efficient, ADA-compliant buses for the La Crosse Municipal Transit Utility.

Replacement of aging vehicles for Onalaska, Wisconsin

• $300,000 to acquire new fuel efficient, ADA-compliant vehicles for the Onalaska Shared-Ride Taxi System.