Milwaukee County, partners show recommended route for north-south bus rapid transit plans

Milwaukee County and its partners on Friday released a recommended route for a north-south bus rapid transit route. The route would run along 27th Street in Milwaukee and stretch as far north as Glendale and as far south as Franklin. 

The 18-mile route would connect neighborhoods with destinations like the 30th Street Industrial Corridor, Aurora St. Luke’s Hospital, Bayshore Mall and Northwestern Mutual’s Franklin campus, the Southeastern Wisconsin Regional Planning Commission said in a statement. Stations on the recommended route would give access to 116,000 people and 51,000 jobs with dedicated transit lanes to accelerate development along the corridor. 

The recommended route would cost around $148 million and federal funds would pay for up to 80% of it, the commission said. Surveys showed that the north-south BRT route could increase ridership by 45 to 60% over the existing Purple Line and would improve the rider’s experience with faster travel times, greater reliability and battery electric buses. 

The county will start its next phase of the project in collaboration with federal funding partners later this fall, then perform more public outreach, design, engineering and finally construction. Commission officials said the service is expected to open by 2027 or 2028.