Aug. 25, 2025 9:15p
(WGTD)---Racine’s transit director says one motivation for establishing a commuter rail line through the city is to make up for poor access to the interstate highway system.
Trevor Jung spoke at Monday night’s meeting of the city’s Finance and Personnel Committee.
With little discussion, the panel recommended that the full council vote to authorize the mayor to negotiate an intergovernmental agreement with the cities of Kenosha and Milwaukee. The agreement would lead to the formation of a commission that would have the power to apply for federal funds.
Extending commuter rail from Kenosha through Racine to Milwaukee has been a long-held goal of regional planners. Jung said there's a belief that commuter rail would lead to greater economic activity along the rail line. "We want to bring the center of economic gravity back to the City of Racine so there's private sector investment in the heart of our community and serve some of the poorest census tracks in the state of Wisconsin, connecting them to over 450,000 jobs," Jung said.
The commission, if one would be created, would not have taxing authority.
The city councils of Kenosha and Milwaukee will be asked to approve a similar resolution.
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