New trains could be coming to a station near you.
And not just between Milwaukee, Madison and Green Bay. One day, you might be able to ride from Pewaukee to Eau Claire, from West Bend to Appleton, or from Walker’s Point to Oak Creek.
Federally funded studies are examining passenger rail routes connecting Milwaukee to most other leading Wisconsin cities. That could bring new stations to suburbs, city neighborhoods and maybe even American Family Field.
It’s time to pick your Milwaukee favorites for the year!
The Wisconsin Department of Transportation is looking at one route from Milwaukee through Madison and Eau Claire to Minneapolis-St. Paul, and another to Green Bay via Appleton, Oshkosh and Fond du Lac. Separately, Racine is reviving a study of the proposed KRM commuter line that would have connected it to Milwaukee and Kenosha, where passengers could transfer to Chicago’s Metra commuter trains.
Amtrak’s current Downtown, Mitchell International Airport and Sturtevant stations are all served by seven daily Chicago-to-Milwaukee Hiawatha trains each way, while Downtown is the only local stop for the Empire Builder on its way from Chicago to the Twin Cities and the Pacific Northwest. Starting sometime this year, the new Great River will replace one Hiawatha trip, stopping at all three southeastern Wisconsin stations before following the Empire Builder route to St. Paul. Proposed Madison and Green Bay lines also would extend Hiawatha trips.
Republican opposition doomed previous KRM and Milwaukee-to-Madison plans. GOP legislative leaders have said they still oppose state funding for trains to Madison, but they have been silent about Green Bay. If proposed routes can win approval, service would be years away. Still, here’s where new stations could be built:
Waukesha County: WisDOT’s long-range rail plan calls for a Waukesha County stop on the way to Madison, Amtrak’s vision specifies Oconomowoc, and Pewaukee Mayor Steve Bierce advocates a stop in his community. “Generally, people in Waukesha County are opposed to public transit,” Bierce concedes. “But times change and attitudes change,” especially for younger residents, he adds.
Ballpark: Northeastern Wisconsin’s NEW Rails advocacy group has called for an AmFam Field station on the Green Bay and Madison routes. A stadium station could serve Brewers fans from elsewhere in the state, Chicago fans when the Cubs visit, and West Siders who find it more convenient than Milwaukee’s Downtown station, says Larry Rueff of NEW Rails.
Northwest: A map in the state rail plan shows Green Bay route stops in West Bend and Milwaukee’s northwest Granville neighborhood. Adding both Granville and AmFam Field stops would give Milwaukee four Amtrak stations – more than any other city.
South: Original KRM plans called for intermediate stops on the South Side – in Bay View, Walker’s Point or both – and in Cudahy, South Milwaukee, Oak Creek, Caledonia and Somers. The new study hasn’t yet designated stops beyond the existing Downtown Milwaukee and Kenosha stations, plus Racine’s downtown transit center, says Trevor Jung, Racine transit and mobility coordinator. Milwaukee officials drafted a tentative purchase option for a Walker’s Point station site in 2018, but it expired unsigned at the end of 2023, city public works spokeswoman Tiffany Shepherd says.
