Southeast Wisconsin Transit System is a marketing partnership of five public transit agencies covering the Greater Milwaukee Area in the United States. These operators provide local or intercounty commuter service in the counties of Milwaukee, Racine, Kenosha, and Waukesha. Washington County and Ozaukee County were formerly a part of the partnership until 2023 and 2024 when their county boards respectively elected to discontinue their transit service without replacement. [1] The partnership is not exclusive, each agency or company maintains separate marketing departments and advertising programs. The partnership does not include joint or coordinated operations, interline fares or transfers, coordinated grant or funding, or coordinated expense sharing as that type of cooperation would be barred by state law. A Wisconsin state law passed in 2011 authored by Stephen Nass and signed by then governor Scott Walker prohibits regional transportation authorities effectively barring agencies from creating formal alliances and funding agreements. [2] Repercussions from that 2011 law and the COVID-19 pandemic have resulted in significant reductions of service particularly in the WOW Counties of suburban Milwaukee.
Ozaukee County is a county in the U.S. state of Wisconsin. As of the 2020 census, the population was 91,503. Its county seat is Port Washington. Ozaukee County is included in the Milwaukee–Waukesha–West Allis, WI Metropolitan Statistical Area.
Milwaukee County is a county located in the U.S. state of Wisconsin. At the 2020 census, the population was 939,489, down from 947,735 in 2010. It is both the most populous and most densely populated county in Wisconsin, and the 45th most populous county nationwide; Milwaukee, its eponymous county seat, is also the most populous city in the state. The county was created in 1834 as part of Michigan Territory and organized the following year.
Wisconsin has a long history with the Boy Scout and Girl Scout organizations from the 1910s to the present day, both programs have independently served thousands of youth in programs that suit the environment in which they live.
Saukville is a town in Ozaukee County, Wisconsin, United States. The Village of Saukville is located in the town's southeast quadrant. The population was 1,755 at the 2000 census.
The Milwaukee metropolitan area is a major metropolitan area located in Southeastern Wisconsin, consisting of the city of Milwaukee and some of the surrounding area. There are several definitions of the area, including the Milwaukee–Waukesha–West Allis metropolitan area and the Milwaukee–Racine–Waukesha combined statistical area. It is the largest metropolitan area in Wisconsin, and the 39th largest metropolitan area in the United States.
Commuter rail services in the United States, Canada, Cuba, Mexico, Panama, and Costa Rica provide common carrier passenger transportation along railway tracks, with scheduled service on fixed routes on a non-reservation basis, primarily for short-distance (local) travel between a central business district and adjacent suburbs and regional travel between cities of a conurbation. It does not include rapid transit or light rail service.
The Eastern Ridges and Lowlands is a geographical region in the eastern part of the U.S. state of Wisconsin, between Green Bay in the north, and the border with Illinois in the south. Lake Michigan lies to the east of the region.
Area code 262 is a telephone area code in the North American Numbering Plan for the southeastern part of the U.S. state of Wisconsin. The numbering plan area comprises suburbs that are a part of the Milwaukee and Chicago metropolitan areas. The area code was created on September 25, 1999, in an area code split of area code 414.
Waukesha Metro Transit is a public transit agency operating in the city of Waukesha and throughout Waukesha County. Founded in 1981, the system directly operates ten bus routes, contracts three commuter routes to Wisconsin Coach Lines, and partially funds two routes of Milwaukee County Transit System which extend into Waukesha County.
Wisconsin Coach Lines is a commuter bus service, charter coach service and intercity carrier based in Waukesha, Wisconsin. WCL was founded in 1941 as Waukesha Transit Lines. It has been a subsidiary of Coach USA since 1998.
Kenosha Area Transit is a city-owned public transportation agency based in Kenosha, Wisconsin.
Washington County Commuter Express was a contracted transportation service that provided service between Milwaukee and Washington counties. WCCE, which was a partner in the Southeast Wisconsin Transit System, was funded by Washington County and operated by Riteway Transportation in Richfield, Wisconsin.
The Milwaukee Electric Railway and Light Company, also referred to as the Milwaukee Interurban Lines or TMER&L, is a defunct railroad that operated in and around Milwaukee, Wisconsin. It was the largest electric railway and electric utility system in Wisconsin, and combined several of the earlier horsecar, steam dummy, and streetcar lines into one system. Its Milwaukee streetcar lines soon ran on most major streets and served most areas of the city. The interurban lines reached throughout southeastern Wisconsin. TMER&L also operated the streetcar lines in Appleton, Kenosha, and Racine, as well as its own switching operations at the Port Washington and Lakeside power plants.
Kenosha is a railroad station in Kenosha, Wisconsin, served by Metra's Union Pacific North Line. It is the northern terminus of the line, which runs south to the Ogilvie Transportation Center in Chicago. Kenosha is the only Metra station outside of Illinois, and is 51.6 miles (83.0 km) from Ogilvie Transportation Center. Because it is located outside the RTA's jurisdiction, the service to the station is partially subsidized by the city of Kenosha. It is the northernmost station of the entire Metra system, making it the most northern station in the entire RTA network. As of 2018, Kenosha is the 135th busiest of Metra's 236 non-downtown stations, with an average of 345 weekday boardings.
The 2012 United States presidential election in Wisconsin took place on November 6, 2012, as part of the 2012 United States presidential election in which all 50 states plus the District of Columbia participated. Wisconsin voters chose 10 electors to represent them in the Electoral College via a popular vote pitting incumbent Democratic President Barack Obama and his running mate, Vice President Joe Biden, against Republican challenger and former Massachusetts Governor Mitt Romney and his running mate, Congressman Paul Ryan.
The Milwaukee Falls Lime Company is the former owner of a limestone quarry and lime kilns located in Grafton, Wisconsin. It was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 2012. The quarry and kilns are now Lime Kiln Park, which also features a pavilion, playground, walking paths, sledding hill, horseshoe pits, and disc golf course.
There are a variety of schema for dividing Wisconsin into regions.
The WOW counties are three counties in the southeast of the U.S. state of Wisconsin: Waukesha, Ozaukee, and Washington. They lie to the west, north, and northwest of Milwaukee, respectively, and are part of the Milwaukee metropolitan area. Collectively, the three counties have a population of 641,131 as of July 2022. Like the collar counties surrounding Chicago, these counties have a primarily white population, and unusually so considering the trend of suburbs around cities in the Rust Belt region becoming more racially diverse. Racine County, to the south of Milwaukee County, has similar demographics outside the city of Racine, but is usually not included. As a consequence of racial demographics, the WOW suburbs of Milwaukee have remained solidly republican for the time being, defying the national trend of the suburbs shifting to the left politically.
Multiple proposals have been made for a 33-mile regional rail service connecting Milwaukee, Racine, and Kenosha in the state of Wisconsin, often referred to as KRM.