The Republican National Convention is fast approaching, and this week, Milwaukee is making final preparations for the big political event.
Preparations include redirecting bus routes that run through streets that are blocked off because of the RNC security perimeter. Multiple bus stops downtown will not be serviced and temporary stops will take their place.
Every day, tens of thousands of people use public transportation to go to work, run errands and get around Milwaukee. But because of the RNC, many of those experiences will change significantly. Starting as soon as today, bus riders can expect delayed arrival times. During the convention, next Monday through Thursday, the Milwaukee County Transit System will not serve any bus stops within the RNC security perimeter.
Sidney Cooper relies on the bus to get to work almost every day from Monday to Friday. He works at Trophy Athletic, a small business in the downtown area. It'll be closed next week because it's inside the security perimeter. But he says the changes to the bus service are so inconvenient for people who use the bus to navigate the city, that he'll actually leave town during the convention.
"It’s a big pain in the butt," Cooper says. "It’s not good for the city to me. It’s one big headache. I can’t wait until it’s over. That’s all I have to say, so life can get back to normal."
On Monday, MCTS announced that fourteen stops will be the most impacted by RNC security measures. Those include stops for CONNECT 1, the Green Line, and routes 12,15, and 30. MCTS has also told riders to expect an overall increase in traffic and delays, not just downtown, but across the public transit system.
MCTS’s paratransit service, Transit Plus, will also see service disruptions. However, Transit Plus vans will be able to enter the RNC vehicle screening perimeter for scheduled drop offs. Anyone riding Transit Plus will be subject to security screenings.
Like Cooper, Trina, who declined to give her last name, relies on public transportation to go to work in Cudahy. She starts her commute in the Heritage Heights neighborhood on the far northwest side. The ride takes her through downtown Milwaukee.
"Why affect everybody’s way of transportation," Trina says. "Why affect the way everybody moves to go to work and stuff like that for the RNC?"
Trina says she hasn’t received much information on how her route will be affected by bus service changes. But, she says, she sees no benefit of having the RNC in Milwaukee because it will disrupt people's everyday routines.
"They're making the RNC more important than everything else that’s going on," Trina says. "Me personally, I don’t care about the RNC because that’s not gonna change who I’m voting for.
A detailed detour map showing bus service changes during the RNC is available on the MCTS website at ridemcts.com. MCTS says that service will return to normal sometime on Friday July 19.
