$25 Million In Federal Money Invested In WI Urban Transit: Evers

WISCONSIN — Gov. Tony Evers announced Monday that $25 million in federal funds will be invested in transit systems in Madison and Milwaukee.

Some $5.2 million will go to the city of Madison, and $19.7 million will go to the city of Milwaukee, the governor's office said.

The money will come from the American Rescue Plan Act, the governor's office said. The funds would help Wisconsin's low-to-middle-income residents, individuals with disabilities and communities of color, the governor's office added.

The investment would benefit Milwaukee County families, communities and the economy, Milwaukee County Executive David Crowley said in a statement.

The money would allow Madison to continue partnerships with its surrounding communities and bring better transportation options to the region, Madison Mayor Satya Rhodes-Conway (D) said in a statement.

Wisconsin lawmakers voted in June to cut funding for public transit in Milwaukee and Madison by 50 percent over the next two years, Wisconsin Public Radio reported.

Republicans said they were cutting state funding for transit programs in the state's two largest cities because they're receiving hundreds of millions of dollars in federal coronavirus relief aid, Wisconsin Public Radio reported.

“For our most urban centers to be targeted by Republican cuts during the last budget was a slap in the face to the disproportionate number of Wisconsinites in those communities who depend on public transit to get to school, work, doctor's appointments — you name it," Evers, a Democrat, said in a statement.

Investing in public transit would help the state's economy recover from the COVID-19 pandemic, Evers added.

Patch reached out to the Milwaukee County Transit System, the City of Madison Metro Transit and Evers' office for comment.