WisDOT held its first public meeting regarding its proposal to expand I-94 from six to eight lanes in the Stadium Interchange; a controversial conversation about a dangerous stretch of road.
Suzanne Kelley with the Waukesha County Business Alliance, one of the many there to provide opinions, says it's time for improvements.
“Our organization strongly supports the modernization of I-94 east-west with eight lanes,” said Kelley.
The Department of Transportation says adding two more lanes to the 3.5-mile stretch of I-94 will help improve safety for drivers. The crash rate near the stadium interchange is four times the statewide average, according to DOT data. 63% of those accidents are rear-end crashes happening because of congestion.
WATCH: WisDOT shared an animation that shows the proposed expansion of I-94.
“It’s a corridor that has a significant safety problem, lots of accidents, much more than the statewide average,” said Southeast Freeways design chief, Brian Bliesner. “The flow of traffic will not be congested in stop-and-go a significant part of the time and that would aid that safety.”
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While everyone at Monday night’s meeting agreed the 60-year-old interchange needs updating, the cost and method of doing that were up for debate with many there against the addition.
Members of the Coalition for More Responsible Transportation, like Pastor Richard Shaw of Milwaukee Inner City Congregations Allied for Hope (MICAH), attended the meeting to say they prefer the Fix at Six solutions for the interchange.
“Expanding to eight lanes will not solve our transportation problem, to solve our transportation problem requires us to better our transportation system,” said Pastor Shaw.
Opponents say adding extra lanes will only encourage faster driving and more reckless behavior on the roads. Instead, the Fix at Six alternative which they back, proposes updating the current six lanes and investing money in more public transit.
“The six-lane design combined with permanent transit investment would best serve the transportation needs of all of Milwaukee County,” said Peter Burgeilis, Milwaukee County Supervisor for District 15.
The DOT’s proposed expansion has a price tag of $1.2 billion, but they are still far from making a final decision.
The next public meeting is scheduled for Wednesday, Dec. 14 at 4 p.m. at Marquette University High School.
