The Transport 2020 plan to create a regional commuter rail and express bus throughout
Transport 2020, a plan that has been in the works for more than a decade, is a plan to improve the transportation alternatives in the Dane County/Greater Madison Metropolitan Area.
“Right now we have conceptual engineering for the commuter rail and will see how it fits into a larger regional transportation system,” said Dick Wagner, co-chair of the finance and governance committee for Transport 2020.
Wagner said if the state Legislature passes Transport 2020, the services will be a great convenience for many
Mario Mendoza, assistant to Mayor Dave Cieslewicz, said supporting Transport 2020 could broaden the
Cieslewicz believes not cutting metro service or increasing bus fares is the right way to expand
For the convenience of
“If they live further away, our rail system or bus system is a convenient way to get them to campus and there is no need to pay parking charges; just bus fare or rail fare,” Wagner added.
The commuter rail will run from Middleton to Sun Prairie, Wagner said, and later a potential line running from DeForest to
However, he said support for the Transport 2020 plan might cause an increase in costs on transportation by a half-cent sales tax.
“We hope by 2011 we bow out of the current financial condition we are nationally experiencing,”
At the end of February and the beginning of March, the Finance and Governance Committee will hold community meetings to comment on the recent proposals for Transport 2020, Wagner added. He noted people have very strong ideas and the committee wants to take them into consideration.
“We have to talk about it in many ways,” Wagner said. “We have to turn it around and upside down; that’s called democracy, we do it all the time.”