Long-dormant highway planning panel to meet next week

After a five-year absence, a commission that plots out some of Wisconsin’s biggest highway projects will reconvene next week.

The Transportation Projects Commission is charged with planning projects that are part of the Wisconsin Department of Transportation‘s Major Highway Development Program, which are typically among the biggest in the state.

The 15-member bipartisan group will meet on Dec. 6, according to WisDOT — the first time since 2014. The hiatus has stunted the state’s planning for long-contemplated infrastructure work, but it’s also not the first break in recent history. The commission didn’t meet in an eight-year stretch between 2002 and 2010, either.

The Transportation Projects Commission has typically met once a year to advance highway projects from the planning stage to the state Legislature. The group is expected to hear the latest next week on projects enumerated for construction and those still under environmental study, although an agenda hasn’t yet been released for the meeting.

“The state budget we approved earlier this year includes long-overdue investments in our transportation system,” Gov. Tony Evers said in a statement. “The TPC serves a vital role in fostering stronger communication between the Legislature, transportation stakeholders, and the public about major highway projects, and I look forward to seeing the collaborative work of the TPC as we work to improve our transportation infrastructure across the state.”

Although the TPC hasn’t met in years, it has continued to deliver a yearly report on the status of big highway projects. According to the most recent report in August, three projects are on hold “indefinitely” until the commission can consider them: a 15-mile expansion of U.S. Highway 14 from Janesville to I-43; the reconstruction of U.S. Highway 12 at the Fort Atkinson bypass and the reconstruction of U.S. Highway 12 between Elkhorn and Whitewater.

State officials also had to cancel a proposed study for a project to rebuild Interstate 39/90 from Madison to the Wisconsin Dells. Starting the study again will require a new environmental review, according to the report.

The commission is composed of 15 members — five from the State Assembly and Senate, the WisDOT secretary, Gov. Evers and three citizen members. Gov. Evers recently named Barron County Highway Commissioner Mark Servi, Waukesha County Public Works Director Allison Bussler and Appleton Mayor Tim Hanna to the commission.

“Restarting the TPC process is an important part of how the agency provides the governor, state lawmakers, and citizens the opportunity to provide crucial input and decision-making on Wisconsin’s major transportation projects,” WisDOT Secretary-Designee Craig Thompson said in a statement. Follow @natebeck9