Recent Streetsblog USA posts about Wisconsin

Transit’s Not Bleeding the Taxpayer Dry — Roads Are

By Tanya Snyder | Dec 12, 2011 | 48 Comments

We’ve said it before and we’ll say it again: Roads don’t pay for themselves. But maybe they should. “Taxpayers cover costs that should be borne by road users,” asserts the State Smart Transportation Initiative at the University of Wisconsin-Madison. “Road subsidies push up tax rates, squeeze government services, and skew the market for transportation.” SSTI, […]

Lessons From the Former Chairman: Oberstar on Ending the Interstate Era

By Tanya Snyder | Oct 14, 2011 | 2 Comments

Streetsblog had a chance today to ask the former Democratic chief of the House Transportation Committee, Rep. James Oberstar of Minnesota, about life since the 2010 election, when he lost by a hair to Republican Chip Cravaack. He said he’s spending his post-Congress time traveling to France, getting paid to say things he used to […]

Questionable Highway Projects Escape Budget Scrutiny in Wisconsin

By Angie Schmitt | May 25, 2011 | 7 Comments

A $125 million “road to nowhere.” Another $100+ million for a bypass around a town of 2,711. Welcome to the era of “fiscal austerity” in Gov. Scott Walker’s Wisconsin. A new report from the Public Interest Research Group examines $1.2 billion in proposed highway projects green-lighted by the Walker administration while the state rolls back […]

Scott Walker’s “Broke” Wisconsin Breaking the Bank for Highways

By Steve Hiniker | Apr 22, 2011 | 4 Comments

This article was written by Steve Hiniker, executive director of 1,000 Friends of Wisconsin, and was reprinted with permission of that organization. It originally appeared in the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel. Governor Scott Walker’s proposed budget has more than enough pain to go around. Schools get hit with more than $800 million in cuts over the […]

Outside Milwaukee, Water Policy May Drain Cities and Destroy Rural Towns

By Angie Schmitt | Jan 25, 2011 | 6 Comments

Waukesha, Wisconsin is a city whose identity has always been tied to water. In the late 1800s, the town was known for its natural springs. So fresh-tasting was the water that people traveled from around the country to share in its purported medicinal properties. Among those who sought its healing powers was first lady Mary […]

New Evidence Refutes Rail Opponents’ Claims in Wisconsin

By Tanya Snyder | Dec 6, 2010 | 4 Comments

Republican Governor-Elect Scott Walker’s decision to kill the Milwaukee-to-Madison high speed rail line is based on bad data and old numbers, according to a story in the Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel. Walker said in his campaign that Wisconsin can’t afford to pay $7.5 million a year to operate the rail line so he’s promised to kill the […]

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