MILWAUKEE – The Milwaukee County Transit System (MCTS) announced on Monday, March 24 it is collecting rider feedback to help shape bus routes that take effect this fall. It is part of an initiative called MOVE 2025. 

MOVE 2025

What we know:

A news release from MCTS says riders are encouraged to see specific route recommendations resulting from Phase I’s feedback and weigh in on four new route options that will be presented. After this phase of feedback is reviewed, MCTS will submit a recommended MOVE 2025 plan to the Milwaukee County Board of Supervisors.

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During the first phase of MOVE 2025, riders and bus operators gave feedback at five public meetings, 15 stakeholder meetings, and completed 1,254 surveys online. Their feedback played a key role in shaping Phase II, which will provide several improvements. This includes new connections that aren’t available today. For example, some recommendations include extending Route 14 to 17th Street and Route 59 on Drexel Avenue. In addition, some routes will have more frequent bus service, such as Route 57. Some branched routes will become more direct, including the BlueLine. To make these changes while remaining within its budget, MCTS will adjust service on other routes where there’s less demand.

Provide feedback now

What you can do:

MCTS wants to hear from riders directly. Feedback can be submitted through an online survey, by visiting RideMCTS.com/MOVE to comment on interactive maps, or by attending one of three public meetings across the county. Riders have until April 11, 2025, to weigh in.

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Dates, locations for public meetings

1. April 4 — 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. at MCTS Administration Building (1942 N. 17th St., Milwaukee)
2. April 8 — 1 p.m. to 3 p.m. at Atkinson Public Library (1960 W. Atkinson Ave., Milwaukee)
3. April 10 — 5 p.m. to 7 p.m. at South Milwaukee Public Library (1907 10th Ave., South Milwaukee)

Timeline for MOVE 2025

• Phase I: December 9, 2024 – February 10, 2025: Public input phase through surveys, online comments, interactive maps, and public meetings.
• Phase II: March – May 2025: MCTS transit planners review feedback and develop a draft plan for additional comment from riders, bus drivers and the general public. Planners prepare a final recommended plan that will be presented to the Milwaukee County Board of Supervisors for review and approval.
• June – August 2025: If the recommended plan is approved, MCTS will begin an education campaign to aid public awareness of the fall service changes.
• Late August 2025: The changes go live.

MILWAUKEE — Even though Marquette University and the University of Wisconsin are no longer in the NCAA tournament, downtown Milwaukee hasn’t missed a beat.

Local businesses say this has been one of the best weekends of the year so far — thanks to March Madness.

Visitors like Elliott Rushing and Kelsey Richleff from Kentucky bought Sunday game tickets with hopes their home team would make it to the second round in Milwaukee on Sunday.

They’re one of the expected 19,000 visitors to pass through over the weekend.

“Wisconsin and Kentucky have similar attributes,” said Rushing. “It’s a little rainy, but Milwaukee is a cool downtown.”

The businesses and locals downtown take pride in showing off Wisconsin in the national spotlight.

Check out: Milwaukee business cash in on March Madness weekend

Businesses get surge from games at Fiserv Forum

“They come here for the beer and the brats,” Ryan Pellinger, bar manager at the Brat House, a popular spot steps away from Fiserv Forum, smiled.

Pellinger and bartender Christian Bradley said they’ve seen waves of fans pouring in since the tournament began from near and far.

“Games on Friday were great — we had so many people in town,” Pellinger said. “It’s been a steady weekend, and we’ve all made good money.”

Kaylee Staral

According to VISIT Milwaukee, the influx of fans is expected to generate an estimated $3.4 million in economic impact for the city.

That momentum was felt down the street at Doc’s Commerce Smokehouse, where general manager Jimmy Hall said it’s been busier than he expected.

“Three 18-hour days in a row is not that bad,” Hall laughed.

“It was much more than we expected — and much more than the Bucks have done for us in the past. The economic impact, even for just a two- to three-day burst like this, is amazing.”

Kaylee Staral

Despite both the Golden Eagles and the Badgers exiting the tournament early, business owners hope the excitement and memories created by fans from across the country will stick around long after the final buzzer.

“We’re in Wisconsin, I know that much,” Richleff smiled.

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Kentucky‘s NCAA Tournament run meets Illinois today in the Round of 32. The Cats and Fighting Illini play their second-round game at 5:15 p.m. (ET) on CBS, with one team moving on to play Tennessee in the Sweet Sixteen.

How will the game play out? I wish I had that answer. The KSR crew will share what they think will happen from 2:30-3:30 p.m. (ET) on a new edition of the KSR Pregame Show, live from 3rd Street Market Hall in downtown Milwaukee. It’s the full crew of Matt Jones, Ryan Lemond, Drew Franklin, and Shannon The Dude on the airwaves, previewing the next game for Mark Pope’s Cats in Pope’s first NCAA Tournament with Kentucky.

Wherever you are, you can tune in on 630 WLAP in Lexington or 840 WHAS in Louisville. You can also stream the KSR Pregame Show on the iHeart Radio app or online.

If you’d like to join the pregame conversation, call the show at 859-280-2287, and Billy R. Sports will put you through to the guys in Wisconsin.

Go Cats. Beat Illinois.