Lane Kimble

MADISON — Two critical freeway corridors on opposite sides of the state could get major expansion or reconstruction work in the coming years, improving safety and reliability.

The Transportation Projects Commission voted unanimously Wednesday to approve studies of I-94 in western Waukesha County and US-53 in Eau Claire and Chippewa counties.

The I-94 study will look at potentially expanding a 27-mile stretch between Willow Glen Road (just west of Oconomowoc) and the Zoo Interchange.

That area of the state has exploded in growth, with upwards of 142,000 vehicles using the eastern portion daily and 74,000 using the western portion.

Division of Transportation Investment Management Administrator Justin Shell says the western part is the busiest stretch of four-lane freeway in the entire state of Wisconsin. Drivers frequently struggle with delays due, in part, to 40 crash hotspots WisDOT identified along the corridor.

“It doesn’t matter if you’re a commuter, if you’re transporting freight, or just trying to get to a Brewers or Bucks game, you’re going to experience this delay,” Shell said, noting such delays added up to around 1 million vehicle hours to commutes in 2024.

“You don’t know when you’re going to hit a situation like that where you come around the corner and you have brake lights.”

The study will look at possible benefits from freeway expansion and upgrades to many of the 14 interchanges along I-94 in Waukesha County.

RAPIDLY GROWING US-53 CORRIDOR ALSO GETS STUDY

The TPC also approved a study looking at a nine-mile stretch of US-53 that bypasses Eau Claire and runs north through Altoona toward Chippewa Falls.

Shell says this portion of US-53 carries more traffic than I-94 in Eau Claire County and has seen traffic volumes grow higher than expected. The study will look at whether to upgrade ramps, rebuild interchanges, expand beyond four lanes, or a mixture of all three.

The TPC meets every December and oversees the state’s Major and Southeast Mega programs. In odd-numbered years, it votes on sending potential projects to study.  The TPC votes to recommend projects for funding in the state budget during even-numbered years.

It also reviews reports from WisDOT’s secretary each February and August.

The 15-person commission includes State Senate Transportation and Local Government Committee Chair Cory Tomczyk, Assembly Transportation Chair Nancy VanderMeer, and several citizen members. Gov. Tony Evers serves as TPC chairman.

“Obviously it’s an important meeting,” Gov. Evers said. “For the fourth (budget) in a row, we had an increase in transportation funding. Thank you so much for that.”

When you’re hangin’ out… down the street… doing the same old thing… you did last week… you just might notice a blast from the past driving by (or from the 1970s, to be specific).

Wisconsin reintroduced its retro yellow license plates this week alongside a new “blackout” option, which could pump millions of dollars into the Transportation Fund.

Once a mainstay of automobiles across America’s Dairyland, Wisconsin began phasing out the yellow plates in the late-1980s. The blackout plates (white letters on a black background), meanwhile, have become popular in recent years in neighboring Iowa and Minnesota.

Both versions cost $25 per year beyond the standard registration fee, plus a one-time $15 issuance fee.

The 2025-27 state budget included the plates as a way to drive revenue for the Transportation Fund. The Legislative Fiscal Bureau estimated the plates would generate about $4.6 million in gross revenue in FY2026 and another $12 million in FY2027.

The governor’s office said Wednesday that revenue estimates for the first three years now surpass $25 million, helping build and maintain more roads, bridges, and highways.

The yellow and blackout plates will both be available beginning in January 2026