Posted on 08/17/2012 7:20:33 PM PDT by Tolerance Sucks Rocks
Yes, transit in the Milwaukee region should be improved to give citizens, especially the many inner city residents without driver's licenses, better transportation options. And, yes, the state should ramp up transit aid and road maintenance even at the expense of new highway projects.
But none of that means that reconstruction of the Zoo Interchange in Milwaukee County should be delayed and that planning for the interchange rebuild should go back to square one, as a lawsuit filed last week seeks to do.
The interchange, the busiest in Wisconsin, is vital to commerce and the state's economy. It needs the upgrade to accommodate growing traffic and to meet modern safety standards. Opened in 1963, its outmoded design is no longer adequate for the volume of traffic flowing through it. Rebuilding it also will provide needed jobs for families throughout the region, including families in the inner city. Delaying the start of reconstruction could put those jobs in jeopardy.
The suit was filed by the American Civil Liberties Union of Wisconsin and Midwest Environmental Advocates against the state Department of Transportation and federal transportation agencies on behalf of Milwaukee Innercity Congregations Allied for Hope and the Black Health Coalition of Wisconsin. The suit is certainly well-intended and raises important issues.
"It's really trying to correct the incredible imbalance between the vast sums that are being spent on this and other freeway projects and the ongoing deterioration and dismantlement of the transit structure to serve those who don't have cars," environmental attorney Dennis Grzezinski said of the lawsuit he helped file, according to a Journal Sentinel article by Larry Sandler.
The lawsuit, filed in U.S. District Court in Madison, argues the project will "have the likely effect of exacerbating regional racial segregation...
(Excerpt) Read more at jsonline.com ...
This is the very essence of why tort reform is needed. Including loser pays.
Hmmm...hard to pick a dog in this fight. I certainly dont support the suit but at the same time I recognize that Wisconsin DOT is nothing more than a vehicle to funnel money to unions. Am I the only one who has noticed that Hwy 41 around Oshkosh has been under construction for 40 years?
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.