Sounding the alarm on inner-city transit | Milwaukee Neighborhood News Service
Rev. Marilyn Miller
April 12, 2018
(Photo by Andrea Waxman)
Milwaukee residents living in zip codes 53205, 53206, 53208, 53209, 53210, 53212, 53216, 53218, 53233 are in danger of losing an important lifeline. The Milwaukee County Transit System’s (MCTS) bus routes 6 and 61 – also known as the JobLines – will disappear from these nine urban zip codes at the end of 2018, unless new funding sources are found.
The JobLines routes were established in 2014 as a settlement with the Wisconsin and U.S. Departments of Transportation, the Black Health Coalition of Wisconsin (BHCW) and Milwaukee Inner-City Congregations Allied for Hope (MICAH) to aid in transporting individuals living in urban neighborhoods to employment opportunities in Waukesha and Washington Counties.
Route 6 runs west along Capitol Drive to Moorland Rd. and south through several New Berlin industrial parks. Route 61 runs northwest along W. Appleton Avenue into a busy business district in Menomonee Falls.
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If you are unsure about the impact of losing these two bus lines, consider this:
In short, transportation has a ripple effect on the economic health of the entire area it serves. Imagine the crippling effect on your daily routine if you did not have access to a car. It’s something most of us take for granted.
So, what do we tell the inner-city residents at the end of 2018 when their transportation lifeline is cut off? What do we tell businesses that suffer due to losing access to employees and customers? What do we tell taxpayers who become disenchanted with the area’s growing blight?
What we can tell people and business owners is to speak up NOW:
The Black Health Coalition of Wisconsin and Milwaukee Inner-City Congregations Allied for Hope meet regularly with MCTS to discuss the JobLines bus routes and other transportation issues. We invite area businesses and community leaders to invest in and commit to JobLines as well.
Rev. Marilyn Miller
Pastor, Reformation Lutheran Church
President, Milwaukee Inner-City Congregations Allied for Hope – MICAH
Jim Addison
President & CEO, Black Health Coalition of Wisconsin – BHCW