The Political Environment: WisDOT Begins Sky-Is-Falling Campaign For New Road Taxes Or Fees

The Political Environment: WisDOT Begins Sky-Is-Falling Campaign For New Road Taxes Or Fees: "Oh, woe is us - - and to you - - says WisDOT: there's not enough money to keep the Zoo Interchange and other projects on track.

Delays are threatened."

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Support #walmartstrikers

http://twitter.yfrog.com/gzkyycdj

Mining Companies Invade Wisconsin for Frac-Sand « EcoWatch: Uniting the Voice of the Grassroots Environmental Movement

Superior Silica Sands Mine-Town of Auburn-Chippewa Co. Photo by Jim Tittle.

Mining Companies Invade Wisconsin for Frac-Sand « EcoWatch: Uniting the Voice of the Grassroots Environmental Movement: "The recent boom in hydrofracking for natural gas and oil has resulted in a little-reported side boom—a sand-rush in western Wisconsin and southeastern Minnesota, where we just happen to have the nation’s richest, most accessible supply of the high-quality silica sand required for fracking operations.
Unfortunately, most of that silica sand lies beneath our beautiful wooded hills and fertile farmland, and within agricultural and residential communities, "

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La Crosse MTU, fare-free first Monday of the Month (except holidays)

Find A Ride Wisconsin: "MTU is a safe, convenient and economical transportation alternative. The bus service covers almost the entire city of La Crosse. Buses also travel to French Island and La Crescent where they will also deviate from their route upon request.
A new Onalaska route has recently started. The MTU allows you and your family members to get to work, doctor’s appointments, recreational activities, school and shopping. Parents can rest from many of their chauffeuring responsibilities.
Our service is a reliable transportation alternative…even during the winter weather. All of our buses are wheelchair accessible for the convenience of the disabled."
Specials: Free Fare on Mondays. Ride free on the first Monday of every month, excluding holidays.

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SignOn.org - Stop Paul Ryan's attack on railroad workers and railroad retirees

SignOn.org - Stop Paul Ryan's attack on railroad workers and railroad retirees: "Rep. Paul Ryan's (R-WI) budget proposes radical and unnecessary changes to railroad retirement that will adversely affect current and retired railroad workers and their families while saving the taxpayer nothing. Railroad retirement is fully funded by railroad workers and the rail industry with no public funds used. Please contact your elected officials to stop the needless changes to railroad retirement."

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People of Janesville reject Koch-puppet #lyinryan

Paul Ryan – Fracking Baron with clear conflicts of interest | Badger Democracy

Paul Ryan – Fracking Baron with clear conflicts of interest | Badger Democracy: "Statements of Economic Interest (SEI) recently released by Congressman Paul Ryan (R-Janesville), when compared to previous years’ SEI show a clear pattern – the more influence he has on the Congressional Budget process, the more stake he (through his wife Janna (nee Little)) has gained in Oklahoma mining interests. This family interest is led by Ryan’s father-in-law, Dan Little; and is currently making millions leasing rights to energy giants engaging in extensive natural gas shale fracking."

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Paul Ryan And His Family To Benefit From The $45 Billion In Subsidies For Big Oil In His Budget | ThinkProgress

Paul Ryan And His Family To Benefit From The $45 Billion In Subsidies For Big Oil In His Budget | ThinkProgress: "So Ryan married into four investments whose asset value is between $265,000 and $650,000.  His family’s income last year from those investments was between $36,000 and $117,000.  Talk about your nest egg.
Presumably he wasn’t thinking about those investments when he voted repeatedly this year to protect Big Oil subsidies."

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Enbridge races to clean up Wisconsin oil spill, restart line | Reuters

Enbridge races to clean up Wisconsin oil spill, restart line | Reuters: "(Reuters) - Canada's Enbridge Inc. on Sunday raced to repair a major pipeline that spilled more than 1,000 barrels of oil in a Wisconsin field, provoking fresh ire from Washington over the latest in a series of leaks.

The spill on Friday -- almost two years to the day after a ruptured Enbridge line fouled part of the Kalamazoo River in Michigan -- has forced the closure of a major conduit for Canadian light crude shipments to U.S. refiners and threatens to further damage the reputation of a company that launched a more than $3 billion expansion program just two months ago."

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Transportation planning commission representation is tilted against #publictransit

Milwaukee Transit Riders Union -: "Despite the fact that other counties in the area have much smaller populations, they have the same number of representatives on SEWRPC. For instance, Waukesha County has less than half of the population of Milwaukee County but has the same number of representatives on SEWRPC. In fact, Milwaukee County representatives only make up 14% of the commission; no wonder transit ranks as such a low priority with SEWRPC."

Letter: Walker needs to walk | Wisconsin Rapids Daily Tribune | wisconsinrapidstribune.com

Letter: Walker needs to walk | Wisconsin Rapids Daily Tribune | wisconsinrapidstribune.com: "I worked for 65 years for the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers (IBEW) of which 48 were at the local utility. Many times I was called out in the night when there were storms with lightning and winds, electrical failures, and storm water backups to climb light poles and restore service in our city. I always paid into the Wisconsin retirement fund. How can he cut our benefits with only a one-day notice?"

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Murphy’s Law: Did the State Screw Talgo? | Urban Milwaukee

Murphy’s Law: Did the State Screw Talgo? | Urban Milwaukee: "“What message does this send to other businesses?” Perez asks. “They should be careful of doing business here because Gov Walker does not keep his word. It’s like we’re talking about a Third World country, where people don’t have respect for their contracts.”"

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People oppose job-killing #Koch puppet

http://www.flickr.com/photos/wisaflcio

UW bus cuts due to FAKE fiscal "crisis." Wisconsin is NOT broke!

The Badger Herald: Students say capacity is factor on cuts to busing: "After receiving pressure from student representatives at the public forum held last week to discuss proposed changes to the Madison bus system, Madison Metro Transit System opened up its second meeting Wednesday night to student input."

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The Political Environment: Awesome Example Of Roads/Rail Double-Standards

The Political Environment: Awesome Example Of Roads/Rail Double-Standards: "In the Highways-Industrial complex that defines Wisconsin state planning and transportation spending, rail projects are squeezed to death over an alleged lack of financing, but highway expansion - - called 'investment' - - is never subjected to the same dollar due-diligence."

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New Report: Long-Term Drop in How Much Wisconsinites Drive, Youth Desire More Transportation Options | WISPIRG Foundation

New Report: Long-Term Drop in How Much Wisconsinites Drive, Youth Desire More Transportation Options | WISPIRG Foundation: "Milwaukee, WI - A new report released today by the WISPIRG Foundation and the Frontier Group demonstrates that Wisconsinites, like drivers across the country, have been driving less since the middle of the last decade. The report, Transportation and the New Generation: Why Young People are Driving Less and What it Means for Transportation Policy, shows that young people in particular are decreasing the amount they drive and increasing their use of transportation alternatives."

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#Oil industry goal is to force you to get a car

Ridership numbers for Fond du Lac Area Transit were up 4.5 percent from 2010 to 2011 and are trending upward due to the economy and rising gas prices.
Students and members of the work force make up 78 percent of Fond du Lac riders.
Of those who ride, 60 percent do not own cars. Household income is less than $25,000 for 81 percent of riders.

WausauDailyHerald

Public #transit key to economic success

Commentary: Freeing up money for transit system will help put people back to work: "Surveys and passenger counts indicate that work-related travel represents close to 50 percent of all transit trips. Access to educational opportunities, like job training, is another significant way that people use the bus. The high percentage of work-related travel might make more sense to you if you keep in mind that the latest census figures on auto ownership indicate that 16 percent of Racine households don’t own a car."

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Business wants, needs, public #transit

Alliance pushes for mass transit funding: "There is a need for additional funding in communities statewide for workers and others who depend on mass transit, the Urban Alliance of the League of Wisconsin Municipalities told state legislators in a letter on Friday supporting the bill.
“You can’t build businesses and job growth if you don’t have transportation to get people to jobs,” said Mayor John Dickert, also president of the alliance, adding one of the biggest complaints he’s heard about the bus cuts was from the business community."

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Milwaukee Transit Riders Union

Milwaukee Transit Riders Union: "The fight for good public transportation is a fight for social and economic justice, for equality in mobility, and for the dignity for all Milwaukeeans. We believe that all Milwaukeeans deserve the dignity of having easy access to jobs and social opportunities throughout our area."

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State bill revives idea of busing sales tax in Milwaukee County - Milwaukee - The Business Journal

State bill revives idea of busing sales tax in Milwaukee County - Milwaukee - The Business Journal: "Milwaukee County could create a regional transit authority with voter approval to levy a 0.5 percent sales tax to pay for busing under a bill introduced this week by state Democratic legislators."

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Record number rode Madison Metro buses in 2011

ANDY MANIS – State Journal archives

A record number of riders boarded Metro Transit buses in Madison in 2011.

Read more: http://host.madison.com/wsj/news/local/govt-and-politics/record-number-rode-madison-metro-buses-in/article_81d9f184-4e02-11e1-b822-001871e3ce6c.html#ixzz1lV2qFyF6
Record number rode Madison Metro buses in 2011: "The buses in Madison were filled with more people than ever in 2011, as riders on fixed routes for Metro Transit totaled nearly 15 million, up more than 10 percent over 2010. "

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The state of the state of Wisconsin

Talk to bus riders about January 29 changes

Talk to bus riders about January 29 changes: "Join us as we talk to bus riders about the upcoming service changes and get their opinions. We will meet at noon at Stone Crreek in the Grand Avenue Mall - in the skyway over 2nd Street. We will warm up with a cup of coffee and then hit the bus stops to talk wih bus riders and hear what they have to say about the changes.

Get to the mall on bus routes: 10, 12, 14, 18, 19, 23, 30 and 31.
Routes 14 & 23 stop at 2nd/Wisconsin going east.
Routes 10(Detour), 18, 19 & 30(Detour) stop at 2nd/Wisconsin going south.
Routes 12, 14, 23 & 31 stop at 2nd/Wisconsin going west.
Routes 12 & 31 stop at 3rd/Wisconsin going east.
Routes 10 & 30 stop on Plankinton/Wisconsin going east.

Walk down 2nd to the skyway and crosswalk and enter the Plankinton Building (east side of the street). Take the elevator up to the 2nd floor and enter the skyway."

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