Madison, WI — Streetcar Scrapped

Rail Transit Online, September 2007

A proposal for a $58-million, four-mile (6.4 km) downtown streetcar system has been abandoned by its champion, Madison Mayor Dave Cieslewicz.  Widespread opposition by other elected officials and civic leaders convinced the mayor to throw in the towel after nearly five years of effort.  “There is an old saying in politics; when you've dug yourself into a hole, the first thing you do is drop the shovel,” said Cieslewicz in an Aug. 13 news release.  “So I have decided I will not continue to pursue the issue of streetcars in Madison.  Major investments like streetcars should only be undertaken when there is broad consensus in the community, and that is clearly not the case with this issue.”  A streetcar study committee will have one more meeting to wrap up its work and will then disband.”  Cieslewicz had been fighting to have the streetcar incorporated into a new Regional Transit Authority that will manage a planned cross-county commuter rail project.  Regional rail was backed by Dane County Executive Kathleen Falk, who also opposes streetcars, and competition between her and the mayor over which mode should be built first delayed both for years.  Finally, last June 27, the two leaders announced a truce which allowed commuter rail to come first and the streetcar to be part of a second phase.  With the streetcar now eliminated, it’s believed the RTA has a better chance of approval on the state and local level.