Milwaukee County Supervisor Pat Jursik, who has previously suggested turning I-94 from the Milwaukee/Racine county line to the state line into a toll road to pay for the cost of redecking the Hoan Bridge, has made it clear she’s not interested in studying any alternatives to redecking the Hoan (emphasis mine):
Matt Hintze, an HNTB vice president who leads the firm’s Milwaukee operation, said the capacity of the smaller bridge would be adequate, adding roughly one minute to the travel time between the end points on the north and south. At 45 feet off the water, the bridge would have to be raised an average of one time per day, and would delay traffic for six minutes, he said.
The study necessary for the decision of the future of the Hoan would be similar to the work that preceded the reconstruction of the Marquette Interchange or I-94 from the Mitchell Interchange to the state line.
Jursik and others in the Hoan coalition believe that sort of study is a waste of money.
“I would like to see the Hoan Bridge redecked, period . . . I’m suggesting to you that the Hoan Bridge through 2035 is an important component of transportation in this area,” she said.
It’s more than a little disconcerting that Supervisor Jursik has ruled out considering any other options for maintaining a link from downtown Milwaukee to the South Shore suburbs, especially before those options are fully studied and considered.
I’ve heard the “sky is falling” argument that a lower roadway and the accompanying lower bridges would cause inconvenient travel delays, but according to the Port of Milwaukee’s own figures, roughly 250 ships, most of them 90 feet or taller, pass under the Hoan and into the port annually. That’s less than one ship a day, and it’s a number that hardly seems to merit ruling out any consideration of a lower roadway and lift or drawbridges.
Bicyclists won’t save the Hoan. These notorious, two-wheeled traffic law breakers rarely buy licenses for their pedaled vehicles. A small group of organized, spandexed riders pushing for the bike lanes on the Hoan should not be recognized as a majority of the bike riders. Besides, policemen don’t feel macho dolling out ticket to rule-breaking bikers, nor do bikers get blamed for the accidents they cause when involved with motorized vehicles, such as when the two-wheelers zinging out into intersections from the now often sloped corner curbs. Children ride bikes of minuscule, unseen, sizes on roads. Adults pedal along the wrong sides of the roads as the riders look powered vehicular drivers straight in their faces. Bike lanes turn two lane main streets into one lane streets, and this exacerbates the rush hour traffic dilemmas that get worse. The whole fiasco just adds to the truth that we live in a country that is just plain dumbing down. Who will be the first biker to get wind blown off of the Hoan Bridge? Anyone want to volunteer? Can we sell contest tickets? The money can go for new bicycle lanes. The winner of the contest will be the person who most closely guesses the time the first bike rider flies to their death from the giant, slippery when wet, windier every year, lofty structure. For continuous money intake for bike lanes, maybe we can make it a monthly event? The person who is most adamant about cycling across the Hoan can become the first bridge launched test pilot. We’ll see how good those turtle head helmets work when the person meets the real Mother Earth in a face-to-face confrontation.