2024 UPDATE | VISION 2050

Image of water body and trees with city skyline

2024 REVIEW
& UPDATE

Every four years, the Commission conducts an interim review and update of VISION 2050 to keep the plan current and address federal requirements. The Commission adopted the first interim review and update in 2020.

The purpose of the 2024 Review & Update is to determine whether it remains reasonable for plan recommendations to be accomplished by 2050 and to identify any parts of the plan that should be changed.

The draft 2024 Update and documents prepared as part of the 2024 Update process are available on this page. We welcomed comments through March 14, 2024, including during virtual public meetings, and are currently considering all comments as we finalize the 2024 Update.

2024 UPDATE OVERVIEW

DRAFT 2024 UPDATE

VIRTUAL PUBLIC MEETINGS

Couldn't make one of the public meetings we hosted? View the presentation slides and recordings below to learn more about the proposed updates to VISION 2050.

VIRTUAL MEETING PRESENTATION

VIRTUAL MEETING RECORDING
2.26.24

VIRTUAL MEETING RECORDING
2.28.24

OVERVIEW OF
2024 UPDATE

Timeline (center section) (February 2024).png

What does the 2024 Update include?

Review of VISION 2050 Recommendations and Implementation to Date (August 2023 Draft)
Review of VISION 2050 Forecasts (August 2023 Draft)
Review of Transportation System Performance (August 2023 Draft)
Updated VISION 2050 Recommendations (February 2024 Draft)
Updated Financial Analysis (December 2023 Draft)
Updated Equity Analysis (February 2024 Draft)
Review of Targets for National Performance Measures (December 2023 Draft)
Updated Milwaukee Metro Area Peer Comparison (under development)

LAND USE

The land use component of VISION 2050 focuses on compact development and presents a development pattern and recommendations that accommodate projected growth in regional population, households, and employment in a sustainable manner. The compact development pattern recommended under VISION 2050 ranges from high-density development such as transit-oriented development (TOD), to neighborhoods in smaller communities with housing within easy walking distance of amenities such as parks, schools, and businesses.

IMPLEMENTATION

VISION 2050 recommends developing urban service areas with a mix of housing types, including multifamily housing and single-family housing on smaller lots, which helps provide affordable housing choices for households with a wide range of incomes. The plan also recommends mixing land uses to create walkable neighborhoods with housing near neighborhood amenities such as parks, schools, and businesses. Following national trends, most new housing units in the Region since 2010 have been multifamily, which tend to support the recommended development pattern. However, single-family housing development during that time period has been mostly at lower densities than recommended, with 88% of single-family lots within sewered areas being greater than 10,000 square feet.

New Housing Units,
2010-2022

Graphic showing new housing units added in Southeastern Wisconsin between 2010 and 2022

SEWRPC, 9/2023

Other notable land use-related activity:

About 95% of primary environmental corridors—areas that encompass the best remaining features of the Region’s natural landscape—are currently protected through various means.
Transit-oriented development opportunities have increased around stations for The Hop streetcar and the new CONNECT 1 bus rapid transit line between downtown Milwaukee and the Milwaukee Regional Medical Center.
The Commission is preparing a Regional Food System Plan.
Milwaukee completed a Climate and Equity Plan.

GROWTH IN THE REGION

As a part of the 2024 Review and Update, the year 2050 forecasts underlying the plan have been compared to current estimates. Overall, the plan forecasts remain valid for long-range land use and transportation planning purposes. However, a major shift is occurring in Southeastern Wisconsin’s development and growth, evidenced by slow population growth compared to the fast job growth. In the past, the Region’s labor force grew at a pace strong enough to support employment growth. But as the Baby Boomers exit the workforce, there will not be enough workers to fill additional, new jobs. To grow the economy, we will need to compete with other parts of the country and the world to attract new residents.

Projected Population

SEWRPC, 9/2023

Projected Employment

SEWRPC, 9/2023

PROPOSED UPDATES

VISION 2050 land use recommendations remain largely unchanged with this update. While some of the Region’s recent development trends have helped to implement the recommendations and some have been inconsistent with the recommendations, the findings of the implementation evaluation do not warrant significant updates. Minor updates include:

Emphasize cluster subdivisions. We are proposing minor changes to emphasize encouraging cluster subdivisions outside urban areas.
Clarify use of the term “sustainability.” We are proposing minor changes to recommendations referencing sustainability to make it clear they are most closely associated with environmental sustainability.
Preserve significant historic and cultural heritage sites. We are proposing to add a new recommendation to recognize the importance of preserving significant historic and cultural heritage sites, including both in developed settings and outside environmental corridors.

Learn more about the proposed changes here.

VISION 2050 Land Use Development Pattern

Land Use Development Pattern VISION 2050.png

SEWRPC, 12/2023

TRANSPORTATION

The transportation component of VISION 2050 includes the following six elements: public transit, bicycle and pedestrian, transportation systems management, travel demand management, arterial streets and highways, and freight transportation.

Previous financial analyses identified a funding gap for the recommended regional transportation system. The portion of the recommended transportation system that can be achieved with reasonably expected revenues is referred to as the “Fiscally Constrained Transportation System (FCTS).”

TRANSIT

VISION 2050 recognizes the many reasons why a robust public transit system is essential for Southeastern Wisconsin’s future. Among them, public transit:

Expands capacity in heavily traveled corridors and densely developed activity centers
Provides an alternative to congested roadways
Can guide development by focusing jobs and housing around transit stations
Assists residents in aging in place
Is vital for residents without access to a car
Can provide employers with access to a larger labor force
Is more affordable than owning a car
Can decrease demand for parking
Can reduce carbon emissions and reliance on fossil fuels

With these benefits in mind, the plan recommends significantly improving and expanding public transit, which would result in a more than doubling of service levels. Improvements would include rapid transit lines, commuter rail lines, and significantly expanded local bus and flexible transit services. However, transit service under the FCTS would be expected to decline due to insufficient current and reasonably expected future revenues, and limitations on how those funds can be used. Not improving and expanding transit service will likely result in significant negative consequences, particularly for those without access to a car, disproportionately impacting people of color, low-income populations, and people with disabilities.

Implementation Highlights

In recent years, the Region has experienced an overall decline in transit service levels and an even larger decline in transit ridership, impacted significantly by the pandemic and ongoing driver shortages. Changes in travel patterns and revenue associated with the pandemic have exacerbated many of the funding constraints that already existed, resulting in transit service providers eliminating routes or reducing service. On the positive side, some progress in implementing the transit element has been made. The Milwaukee County Transit System began service on the Region’s first bus rapid transit (BRT) line, CONNECT 1, and Commission staff assisted the County in completing a study for a second BRT line along the 27th Street corridor. The Region’s first on-demand microtransit service, FlexRide Milwaukee, was also initiated to connect Milwaukee residents with jobs in nearby suburbs.

Public Transit Service Levels

Annual Public Transit Vehicle-Miles of S

National Transit Database and SEWRPC, 9/2023

Passenger Boardings on Local Transit Services

Note: Includes Kenosha Area Transit, Milwaukee County Transit System, Waukesha Metro, RYDE Racine, and The Hop Streetcar.

National Transit Database and SEWRPC, 9/2023

Proposed Updates

Consider real-time paratransit service. In 2023, the Federal Transit Administration (FTA) issued guidance that its existing formula grant programs can be used to provide “paratransit service to eligible riders on a real-time basis and/or allow for intermediate stops” due to technology that enables flexibly scheduled service. We are proposing to revise the plan's paratransit recommendation to reflect this updated guidance.
Highlight microtransit to improve access to suburban employment centers. In 2022, FlexRide Milwaukee opened as an on-demand transportation service connecting individuals in Milwaukee with suburban employment zones. We are proposing to revise the plan to recognize the ability of microtransit like FlexRide Milwaukee to fill gaps in the transit network and help transit riders complete the last segments of their journey to work.
Recognize need to update the recommended transit system as studies progress and needs evolve. The 2024 Update continues to include the recommended alignment from the 2020 Update for the proposed bus rapid transit corridor along 27th Street in Milwaukee County. We will note in the plan that future environmental review and design may result in revisions to this alignment and that of other planned rapid transit routes.

Learn more about the proposed Transit changes here.

BICYCLE & PEDESTRIAN

The ability to support biking and walking is an important component of improving quality of life and achieving healthy, vibrant communities. Key plan recommendations include:

Expanding the on-street bicycle network, including enhanced bicycle facilities in key regional corridors
Expanding off-street paths to provide a well-connected network
Providing sidewalks in areas of existing or planned urban development
Minimizing crashes involving bicyclists and pedestrians

Implementation Highlights

Steady progress in adding both on-street and off-street bicycle accommodations has been made in recent years. The number of bike share stations has also increased significantly, with adaptive bike share programs that increase access for people of all abilities, and dockless scooters are being studied for their viability as a transportation option. While there is a need to develop more walkable neighborhoods with sidewalks, numerous efforts to facilitate safe, efficient, and accessible pedestrian travel are ongoing. A few examples include Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) transition plans, Milwaukee’s Safe & Healthy Streets project, local Complete Streets policies, and Safe Routes to School programs. Multiple communities have also progressed with local bicycle and pedestrian plans that support VISION 2050’s bicycle and pedestrian element.

Miles of Bicycle Facilities

SEWRPC, 9/2023

Proposed Updates

Bicycle network changes associated with recently completed efforts. Our partners across the Region have continued to build bicycle and pedestrian improvements, which are being incorporated into the updated bicycle network map. These additions include new facilities along the Powerline Trail, Fox River Trail, and County Highway KR, and implementation of enhanced bicycle facilities in the City of Milwaukee.
Note the impact on implementing sidewalks due to Sojenhomer LLC v. Village of Egg Harbor. In 2023, the Wisconsin Court of Appeals determined that condemnation power cannot be used to acquire property to provide sidewalks along a roadway. This change may impact communities’ ability to implement the VISION 2050 recommendation to provide pedestrian facilities for safe, efficient, and accessible pedestrian travel. However, there are ways to mitigate impacts to roadway projects due to the decision, included in guidance developed by WisDOT, and we do not intent to change the the VISION 2050 pedestrian facilities recommendation.
Emphasize accessible facilities for people with disabilities per new ADA Public Right-of-Way-Accessibility Guidelines. In 2023, the U.S. Access Board published new minimum accessibility standards for pedestrians with disabilities. Among its key recommendations are the establishment of ‘pedestrian access routes’ so individuals with mobility devices can pass others without entering a roadway, requiring audible and vibrotactile indications of walk interval at crosswalks, and other considerations. We are proposing to expand the VISION 2050 pedestrian facilities recommendation to emphasize these new guidelines.

Learn more about the proposed Bicycle & Pedestrian changes here.

STREETS & HIGHWAYS

VISION 2050 makes recommendations for the Region’s arterial streets and highways. The planned arterial street and highway system totals 3,670 route-miles. Approximately 92% are recommended to be resurfaced and reconstructed to their existing traffic carrying capacity. The remaining 8% would either be reconstructed with additional through traffic lanes or involve constructing new arterial facilities. Key streets and highways recommendations include:

Keeping the street and highway system in a state of good repair
Incorporating complete streets concepts to accommodate all roadway users
Strategically expanding capacity to accommodate all roadway users and address residual congestion
Minimizing total traffic crashes, along with crashes involving fatalities and serious injuries—including by reducing reckless driving

Like the transit element, the ability to implement the recommended streets and highways element is hindered by insufficient current and reasonably expected future revenues. The funded portion of the recommended system under the FCTS was identified and excludes reconstruction of several portions of the system, particularly of the Region’s freeway system. This means that reconstruction projects would be spaced further apart, and additional rehabilitation projects (e.g., pavement resurfacings) would be needed. Pavement quality on the system would likely decrease, as has been the recent trend.

Implementation Highlights

Approximately 560 miles of arterial streets and highways have been resurfaced, reconditioned, or reconstructed since VISION 2050 was originally adopted, primarily maintaining each roadway’s existing capacity. However, pavement condition on the system has worsened over the past decade, with the number of miles in good condition decreasing by about 14% while the number of miles in bad condition increased by about 25%. In terms of safety, overall crashes have declined in recent years, partially due to changes in travel behavior resulting from the pandemic, but a more concerning upward trend has occurred: both fatal vehicular crashes and fatalities have increased to the highest levels in the past 20 years.

Fatal Vehicular Crashes and Fatalities

Wisconsin Traffic Operations and Safety Laboratory and SEWRPC, 9/2023

Proposed Updates

Acknowledge need for resilient stormwater infrastructure. We are proposing to update the recommendation about arterial street and highway security needs to recognize that stormwater infrastructure must be monitored, maintained, and hardened against increasing high-intensity rain events to prevent roadway washout or collapse.
Expand the electric vehicle (EV) charging network and accommodate other energy choices. We propose adding a new recommendation that recognizes WisDOT’s work in planning for a statewide EV charging network and encourages further coordination within the Region to achieve that goal. The proposed recommendation also recognizes fuels such as hydrogen and CNGs as viable options for reducing transportation-associated greenhouse gas emissions.
Reflect road diet on National Avenue in Milwaukee. Based on the locally preferred
alternative for the reconstruction of National Avenue (STH 59) from 39th Street to 1st Street in
the City of Milwaukee, the portion of the project east of 33rd Street is expected to be
reconfigured from four travel lanes to two to provide higher levels of bicycle and pedestrian
accommodations. These changes will be reflected in the jurisdictional highway system plan for
Milwaukee County.

Learn more about the proposed Streets & Highways changes here.

TRANSPORTATION SYSTEMS MANAGEMENT (TSM)

TSM involves managing and operating existing transportation facilities to maximize their carrying capacity and travel efficiency. Key TSM strategies include:

Freeway traffic management (e.g., traffic detectors, ramp meters, variable message signs)
Coordinated traffic signals
Improved traffic flow at intersections
Parking management and guidance systems and demand-responsive pricing for parking in major activity centers

Implementation Highlights

While the expansion of TSM measures has been relatively limited in recent years, ongoing measures and efforts continue. The WisDOT Traffic Management Center, located in the City of Milwaukee, continues to play an essential role in implementing freeway traffic management measures and bringing traffic operations engineers together with State Patrol officials to address incidents and share advisory travel information. WisDOT also continues to study and prepare for emerging Connected and Automated Vehicle (CAV) technologies, including establishing a Wisconsin Automated Vehicle External (WAVE) Advisory Committee and preparing a CAV Strategic Work Plan. In addition, the Commission is in the process of documenting traffic signals and signal systems on arterial streets and highways and intends to develop recommendations (including prioritization) for improvement and expansion of coordinated signal systems.

Proposed Updates

No substantive changes are being proposed to the TSM element as part of the 2024 Update.

Learn more here.

TRAVEL DEMAND MANAGEMENT (TDM)

VISION 2050 recommends implementing TDM measures or strategies intended to reduce personal and vehicular travel or to shift such travel to alternative times and routes, allowing for more efficient use of the existing capacity of the transportation system and reducing traffic volume, congestion, air pollutant emissions, and fuel consumption. The TDM element inherently overlaps other plan elements that recommend measures that would reduce single-occupancy vehicle (SOV) trips, and includes additional recommendations such as:

Regionwide program to promote TDM
High-occupancy vehicle (HOV) preferential treatment
Expanded park-ride lots
Personal vehicle pricing
Detailed site-specific neighborhood and major activity center land use plans

Implementation Highlights

In 2023, the Commission launched CommuteWISE, a region-wide program that includes education, marketing, and promotion elements aimed at encouraging alternatives to drive-alone personal vehicle travel. CommuteWISE is working to engage employers and commuters through a new trip-planning and ride-matching platform that allows users to search for multimodal commute options; log sustainable trips and track the vehicle miles, cost, and CO2 saved; and run challenges to incentivize behavior change.

In other notable activity, several park-ride lots are no longer served by transit due to recent reductions in commuter bus service, while several plans have been completed that have a particular focus on connecting multimodal transportation and land use.

Proposed Updates

Continue and expand CommuteWISE to promote alternatives to drive-alone travel. The recommendation to promote travel demand management is being updated to recommend that the recently launched CommuteWISE program, which effectively implements a portion of the original recommendation, continues and expands.
Recognize the role of e-bikes in supporting bicycle commuting. We are proposing to include an acknowledgement that e-bikes make it easier to ride further and with significantly less effort, which can positively impact the number and length of bicycle commuting trips. VISION 2050 will also recommend discouraging the prohibition of e-bikes from multi-use paths.
Reflect FlexRide Milwaukee in the recommendation that encourages government entities to partner with private-sector shared mobility service providers. As the recently launched FlexRide Milwaukee microtransit service effectively implements a portion of this recommendation, we are proposing to update the recommendation to recognize this service.

Learn more about the proposed TDM changes here.

FREIGHT

The movement of freight is essential for maintaining and growing Southeastern Wisconsin’s economy. Truck, rail, water, and air modes of transportation bring raw materials to the Region’s manufacturers, carry finished goods to domestic and international trade markets, move the goods that stock the Region’s retail stores, and deliver parcels to consumers.

VISION 2050 recommends a multimodal freight transportation system designed to provide for the efficient and safe movement of raw materials and finished products to, from, and within Southeastern Wisconsin. To achieve this goal, VISION 2050 recommends improvements to the Region’s transportation infrastructure as well as intergovernmental cooperation and other actions to preserve key transportation corridors, address regulatory inefficiencies, meet trucking industry workforce needs, and increase transportation safety and security. Key freight recommendations include:

Pursuing a new truck-rail intermodal facility
Improving accommodation of oversize/overweight (OSOW) shipments
Constructing the Muskego Yard bypass
Addressing congestion and bottlenecks on the Regional Highway Freight Network (RFHN)

Implementation Highlights

Since 2020, about 24 miles of planned new arterials and arterial widenings that are part of the RHFN have been constructed or are currently under construction, which would help mitigate existing and forecast future traffic congestion on the RHFN. The Commission, in consultation with WisDOT, has also designated Critical Urban Freight Corridors (CUFCs) and Critical Rural Freight Corridors (CRFCs) that provide regional and local connectivity to the RHFN. Projects located within these corridors would be eligible to receive certain federal funding. In addition, WisDOT has made progress on the Muskego Yard Bypass project, including a recent application for federal funding. This project would allow freight trains traveling through downtown Milwaukee to bypass the Milwaukee Intermodal Station, benefiting both freight and passenger trains.

Location of Proposed Muskego Yard Bypass

Map of the location of the proposed Muskego Yard Bypass

SEWRPC, 9/2023

Proposed Updates

No substantive changes are being proposed to the Freight element as part of the 2024 Update.

Learn more here.

FINANCIAL ANALYSIS

The Commission is federally required to “fiscally constrain” the transportation component of VISION 2050. In other words, the plan must show only the transportation projects the Region can fund using reasonably expected revenues from federal, State, and local sources through 2050.

In the 2024 Update:

Road and transit costs and schedules were revised in collaboration with local partners and WisDOT
Project costs were adjusted to account for inflation
Federal and State transportation budgets and data were updated to reflect recent changes to funding, including the increases from the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act, to forecast reasonably expected transportation revenues through 2050

Like previous financial analyses, the 2024 Update identified a significant funding gap between the Region’s expected revenues and the investment needed to implement the VISION 2050 transportation system. Without additional funding, the improvement and expansion of the Region’s public transit system, and much of the roadway reconstruction and expansion VISION 2050 recommends, will not be possible.

Investment Required for VISION 2050

View Updated Financial Analysis

Funding Gap Highlights

The Fiscally Constrained Transportation System (FCTS) is the portion of VISION 2050 that can be implemented without an increase in revenues to address the funding gap. Under the FCTS:

Transit service levels would decline by about 30% by 2050 rather than double as recommended under VISION 2050
Fewer roads would be reconstructed, widened, or newly constructed; and many of the roadways recommended for reconstruction by 2050 would instead be rehabilitated, extending the life of the roadway but likely reducing pavement quality

Negative impacts from not improving transit:

Reduced access to jobs, healthcare, education, and other daily needs, particularly for households without access to a car, which is more likely to affect people of color and low-income residents
Smaller labor force available to employers
Reduced traffic carrying capacity in the Region’s heavily traveled corridors
Limited transit-oriented development and redevelopment
Reduced ability to develop compact, walkable neighborhoods

Consequences of insufficiently funding streets & highways:

Costly emergency repairs and inefficient pavement maintenance due to unnecessary—and increasingly ineffective—repaving projects
Increased traffic congestion and travel delays, along with decreased travel reliability
Increased crashes due to traffic congestion, outdated roadway design, and deteriorating roadway conditions

EQUITY ANALYSIS

For the 2024 Review and Update, the equity analysis summarizes its findings using an interactive map directory that allows users to view findings for each of the elements of the analysis, zoom into areas of interest, and compare the Fiscally Constrained Transportation System (FCTS) and VISION 2050 transportation system. Access the map directory at the button below.

About the 2024 Equity Analysis

VISION 2050 identified significant education and income disparities between people of color and white populations in Southeastern Wisconsin. In the Milwaukee metro area, these disparities are more pronounced than almost any other metro area in the United States. To ensure VISION 2050 achieves its Equitable Access objectives of providing access to opportunity for everyone, the equity analysis looks at the Region’s transportation system across five evaluations. Each evaluation provides insight into how well the system serves the people who use it. Together, these evaluations provide a picture of how well the transportation system will meet the needs of the Region in 2050.

In the 2024 Update, the equity analysis includes updated data from the 2020 Decennial Census and 2017-2021 American Community Survey. It reflects current transit services and progress on roadway projects.

View Updated Equity Analysis

View Equity Analysis Map Directory

Key Findings

The 2024 Update reaffirmed the conclusions of previous equity analyses. No part of the Region would disproportionately bear the impact of planned freeway and surface arterial capacity improvements. VISION 2050 would significantly increase transportation access and quality to traditionally underserved groups, but a substantial funding gap impedes the Region’s ability to implement the plan. The FCTS, which includes a 30% transit service decline relative to current levels, is the projected transportation system in 2050 if this funding gap is not addressed. See the updated financial analysis for more information on transportation funding.

Jobs Accessible Within 30 Minutes via Transit

Existing

VISION 2050

Fiscally Constrained

Jobs Accessible Within 30 Minutes via Transit (FCTS).png

VIRTUAL MEETING PRESENTATION

VIRTUAL MEETING RECORDING 2.26.24

VIRTUAL MEETING RECORDING 2.28.24

New Housing Units, 2010-2022

SEWRPC, 9/2023

Projected Population

SEWRPC, 9/2023

Projected Employment

SEWRPC, 9/2023

VISION 2050 Land Use Development Pattern

SEWRPC, 12/2023

Public Transit Service Levels

National Transit Database and SEWRPC, 9/2023

Passenger Boardings on Local Transit Services

Note: Includes Kenosha Area Transit, Milwaukee County Transit System, Waukesha Metro, RYDE Racine, and The Hop Streetcar. National Transit Database and SEWRPC, 9/2023

Miles of Bicycle Facilities

SEWRPC, 9/2023

Fatal Vehicular Crashes and Fatalities

Wisconsin Traffic Operations and Safety Laboratory and SEWRPC, 9/2023

Location of Proposed Muskego Yard Bypass

SEWRPC, 9/2023

Southeastern Wisconsin Regional Planning Commission

VIRTUAL MEETING RECORDING
2.26.24

VIRTUAL MEETING RECORDING
2.28.24

New Housing Units,
2010-2022

Note: Includes Kenosha Area Transit, Milwaukee County Transit System, Waukesha Metro, RYDE Racine, and The Hop Streetcar.

National Transit Database and SEWRPC, 9/2023