Work Mobility Act is NEEDED in Milwaukee

MILWAUKEE, WI - Urban and largest city in Wisconsin has a history of public transportation concerns for Milwaukeeans for many years. It was noted as a major contributor to the "SPATIAL MISMATCH" mention in the Federal Reserve and Brookings Institution case studies (pages 162-163) of the Enduring Challenge of Concentrated Poverty - Case studies of communities across the U.S. Milwaukee was one of the 16 cities cited in this study.

For many years, Sustainable Milwaukee, a neighborhood-level organization, wagered a long fight for transportation for Milwaukeeans relative to quality of life issues and economic development of the City of Milwaukee. Their efforts even went to the Federal Transportation level in a class suit that very recently the funds were let to the Milwaukee area. Campaign Neighborhood, led by Mary Glass, Chair/CEO, was one of the Milwaukee organizations that was a signer of the federal suit.

To this disparity, discrimination, lack of leadership; there have been transportation proposals that have gone from Chicago-Madison, Milwaukee to Chicago, streetcar and trolley ideas to the NOW Red-Green-Blue line (January 29, 2012). However, they do not seem to address "a distinct" way to buttress this common denominator for "boldness of access" for Milwaukeeans, especially African American, other People of Color and the Work-Challenged (un-, under-employed; un-, under-degreed and certificated; un-, under-financed neighborhood-level business; disabled; and re-entry - especially those returning from WAR, INCARCERATION, BOOMERANG EMPLOYMENT, BOOMERANG RETIREMENT and DEGREED students without employment).

Why have there been such neglect by the recent mayors, common council members of the city of Milwaukee, county executives, state lawmakers and federal lawmakers? Especially since there are repeated documentation of reports that speak to the issue.

What about "common sense", linking employment and potential employees, maximizing federal dollars and INCLUSION rather than EXCLUSION?

Well, in State Senator Larson's January 26, 2012 Weekly Newsletter, he shares the following regarding the "WORK MOBILITY ACT":
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State Senator Chris Larson, 7th District

My Democratic colleagues and I will soon be introducing the Workforce Mobility Act, legislation to provide workers in communities across Wisconsin reliable, accessible transportation to their jobs.

In his budget, Governor Walker chose to decrease funding for public transit by 10 percent and eliminate $77 million from shared revenue to local governments in order to fund $2.3 billion in tax breaks for large corporations. As a result, local governments have been forced to shift funding, raise fares, change or eliminate routes, and reduce vital services.

Many of these changes will be seen by riders in our own community this month. On January 1 of this year, the Milwaukee County Transit System was forced to increase fares for TransitPlus users by 75 cents, raising the cost of each bus ticket to $4. The system will see even bigger changes on Sunday, January 29, when some bus stops will be eliminated and other bus routes will be renamed.

The Workforce Mobility Act seeks to prevent further cuts by reinvesting in our state’s public transit infrastructure to ensure that our family, friends and neighbors are able to commute to and from work. According to the nonpartisan Legislative Fiscal Bureau, a recent re-estimate of the transportation fund indicates that an additional $32.9 million remains available for use. This bill would use $9.6 million of this funding to restore the cuts to our mass transit systems ensuring that our workforce can get to their jobs each day.

Having a well-supported public transit system is vital to maintaining and creating jobs in our community. According to the Milwaukee County Transit systems, on average 140,000 rides are provided daily. Of these, 39% are commuters traveling to and from work, another 5% are heading to job interviews, and 11% are students making their way to classes to learn valuable skills for their future careers.

Click here to view a copy of the Workforce Mobility Act.

State Senator Chris Larson
7th District
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Milwaukee Professionals Association will keep a close eye on this upcoming legislation to ensure reliable, accessible transportation to jobs. We urge Senator Larson, co-sponsors and other legislators to keep us in the information loop as well as STOP by the citizenry "in-their-backyard" for comments and necessary input regarding tangible issues impacting the success, before finalizing anything.
January 30, 2012