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Record of Proceedings

Milwaukee Public Transportation, Utility & Waterways Review Board Meeting – October 9, 2026

Common Council — Friday, October 9, 2026
BodyMilwaukee, Wisconsin
SessionCommon Council
DateFriday, October 9, 2026
StatusFILED
Video Record
0:00 / 2:05:50

Original source
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Speaker numbers apply only to this recording.

Speaker 1

0:00

We'll call to order the meeting of the Public Transportation Utility and Waterways Review Board for Thursday, October 8th of 2026.

0:07

It's 10 a.m.

0:08

I'm chair of the committee, Aldwin Bob Bauman, and please uh take the roll,

Unassigned speaker

0:12

please.

Speaker 2

0:13

Mr.

0:13

December?

Speaker 1

0:14

Here.

Speaker 2

0:15

Mr.

0:15

Lane.

Speaker 3

0:16

Here.

0:18

Here.

0:19

Mr.

Speaker 2

0:19

Song.

Speaker 3

0:21

Excuse me.

Speaker 2

0:21

So see, I'm sorry.

Speaker 3

0:25

Here.

Speaker 2

0:26

And Mr.

0:27

Orya?

Speaker 3

0:28

Here.

Speaker 2

0:28

And did I miss anybody besides the chair?

Unassigned speaker

0:31

Oh, I think we're good.

Speaker 2

0:31

And Mr.

0:32

Chair.

Speaker 1

0:32

All right.

0:33

Present.

0:34

All right.

0:34

Uh, first item is we called order.

0:37

We've done that.

0:37

Roll call, we've done that.

0:38

Are there any prior minutes we need to review?

0:40

I did.

0:41

Okay.

0:41

There are motion to the minutes are from our public uh power discussion.

0:46

Move approval.

0:47

Is there a second?

0:48

Second.

0:49

All in favor say aye.

0:50

Aye.

0:50

Okay.

0:51

First uh substantive item is a communication from Milwaukee County Transit System relating to the MCTS forward service concepts and process.

1:00

This is

Unassigned speaker

1:00

a

Speaker 1

1:01

well, I'll let you explain what this is rather than me trying to paraphrase what you're going to tell

Speaker 4

1:06

us.

1:06

Good morning.

1:06

Good morning.

1:07

Good morning, uh Alderman Bauman and committee members.

1:10

My name is Steve Fuentes.

1:11

I'm president and CEO of the Milwaukee County Transit System.

1:14

Kevin, good to see you again.

1:16

So today you're going to hear a little bit about MCTS forward and what it is, how we got here, why we're doing it, and what we're doing to try and better our own future.

1:28

Um our story of funding has been discussed in Milwaukee County for quite some time now.

1:33

Uh the Wisconsin policy forum began writing about the funding structure way back in 2008.

1:38

And then again in 2021 and 2023, they put out periodicals and articles about a storm coming, uh, wheels falling off the bus and a pending fiscal clear.

1:51

So that day has arrived.

1:53

What they started talking about a long time ago, what held off uh that day coming sooner was ARPA money, federal ARPA money.

2:02

For the past five to six years,

Unassigned speaker

2:04

uh

Speaker 4

2:04

MCTS has utilized that 192 million roughly of federal ARPA money to sustain service levels.

Speaker 1

2:12

Just for acronym purposes at the American uh

Discussion Breakdown — Share of Meeting
Public Transportation█████████████████████████████████████████████73%
Economic Development████6%
Public Engagement████6%
Procedural██3%
Engineering and Utility██3%
Public Works█2%
Community Engagement█1%
Land Use Planning█1%
Fiscal Sustainability█1%
Summary of Proceedings

Milwaukee Public Transportation, Utility & Waterways Review Board Meeting – October 9, 2026

The Public Transportation, Utility and Waterways Review Board met on October 9, 2026, chaired by Alderman Bob Bauman. The committee received detailed presentations on the Milwaukee County Transit System's (MCTS) financial restructuring plan, Amtrak's Hiawatha West extension, and the Milwaukee-Racine-Kenosha (Mark) Rail passenger study.

MCTS Forward Service Concepts & Public Engagement

  • Presenters: Steve Fuentes (President/CEO, MCTS) and Jesus Ochoa (Director of Service Development).
  • Fiscal Crisis Context: MCTS has largely exhausted a $192 million federal ARPA fund used to sustain service for five years. The Milwaukee County Comptroller projects a $15.7 million deficit in 2027, growing to $37 million by 2031.
  • Root Cause: State transit aids were cut by 10% in 2011 (under Act 10) and have remained flat. Adjusted for inflation, MCTS estimates it is losing $58 million annually compared to 2011-level funding ($174 million vs. the current $116 million).
  • Plan Overview: MCTS Forward is a three-year plan requiring a 25% reduction in service hours to achieve financial stability.
    • Ridership Concept: Concentrates high-frequency service in the dense urban core, preserving ridership and convenience but eliminating geographic coverage in the county's northern and southern extremes.
    • Coverage Concept: Preserves the service footprint but drastically reduces frequency (many routes moving from 20 to 60 minutes), risking a loss of discretionary riders.
  • Timeline: Public engagement runs until October 26, 2026. A draft plan is expected in winter 2026-27, with a final plan by fall 2027. Implementation is unlikely before 2028/2029.
  • Discussion: Aldermen Bauman and Brower criticized the presentation of the two concepts as a false binary choice. Bauman argued the coverage model would turn transit into a social welfare program and lose political support. Bauman urged MCTS to plan robust Summerfest shuttle service and to emphasize aspirational growth models in public outreach.

Amtrak Hiawatha West & State Rail Update

  • Presenters: Lisa Stern (Chief of Railroads & Harbors, WisDOT) and an Amtrak representative.
  • Booming Services: The Chicago-Twin Cities Borealis service has exceeded expectations, carrying half a million riders by September 2026. A fourth coach car is being added.
  • Hiawatha West Proposal: An incremental, conventional-speed (59 mph) extension of two daily Amtrak round trips from Milwaukee to Madison via Pewaukee and downtown Madison.
  • Infrastructure & Cost: The $273 million capital project includes track upgrades and 33 grade crossing improvements. It initially requires a Positive Train Control (PTC) exemption permitted for low-frequency service on low-freight corridors.
  • State Funding Request: A $55 million state match has been requested in the upcoming biennial budget.
  • Discussion: Committee members expressed concern that limiting service to two round trips could stifle ridership growth, citing the Capitol Corridor's experience. A strong case was made for a west-side Milwaukee County station to improve access and avoid backtracking.

Milwaukee-Racine-Kenosha (Mark) Passenger Rail Study

  • Presenter: Clayton Johansen (DB Echo North America, consultant to the Mark Rail Commission).
  • Project Scope: A full-service vision for passenger rail service connecting Kenosha, Racine, and Milwaukee, acting as a local complement to Amtrak's Hiawatha service.
  • Governance: The Mark Passenger Rail Commission emphasized the project would be a Wisconsin-controlled entity, not joining an Illinois transit body.
  • Funding Status: The initial study is complete. The project is seeking entry into the FRA's Corridor ID program for continued development and is not yet ready for a state budget appropriation.
  • Discussion: Alderman Bauman questioned how cost estimates for the Milwaukee-Kenosha segment compare to Hiawatha West given similar existing track conditions. Clear branding differentiation from Amtrak was strongly recommended.

Key Outcomes

  • Information Received: The committee took no formal votes but gathered significant information on the region's transit and rail fiscal challenges.
  • Directives: MCTS was urged to frame public engagement around possibilities beyond the 25% cut scenarios. Alderman Bauman directed MCTS to prioritize planning for robust Summerfest transit service.
  • Next Steps: MCTS public engagement closes October 26, 2026. WisDOT awaits state budget decisions. The Mark Rail Commission continues pursuing federal corridor designation.

Meeting Transcript

We'll call to order the meeting of the Public Transportation Utility and Waterways Review Board for Thursday, October 8th of 2026. It's 10 a.m. I'm chair of the committee, Aldwin Bob Bauman, and please uh take the roll, please. Mr. December? Here. Mr. Lane. Here. Here. Mr. Song. Excuse me. So see, I'm sorry. Here. And Mr. Orya? Here. And did I miss anybody besides the chair? Oh, I think we're good. And Mr. Chair. All right. Present. All right. Uh, first item is we called order. We've done that. Roll call, we've done that. Are there any prior minutes we need to review? I did. Okay. There are motion to the minutes are from our public uh power discussion. Move approval. Is there a second? Second. All in favor say aye. Aye. Okay. First uh substantive item is a communication from Milwaukee County Transit System relating to the MCTS forward service concepts and process. This is a well, I'll let you explain what this is rather than me trying to paraphrase what you're going to tell us. Good morning. Good morning. Good morning, uh Alderman Bauman and committee members. My name is Steve Fuentes. I'm president and CEO of the Milwaukee County Transit System. Kevin, good to see you again.

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