Anatomy of Milwaukee County: a Traffic Safety Summary
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ANATOMY OF MILWAUKEE COUNTY: A TRAFFIC SAFETY SUMMARY There were 307 fatal crashes in Milwaukee County from 2012 to 2016. 1 THE PLACE Section Summary Milwaukee County is the center of a metropolitan area that has a population of over 1.55 million persons. The principal routes are the Interstate highways, STH 36 south of I-41/43/894, and STH 145 north of I-43. Milwaukee County is the top county in the state for VMT (vehicle-miles traveled), the number of registered vehicles, urban population, percentage of the population that is urban, and percentage of the county’s area that is urban. Milwaukee County has the lowest numbers in the state for VMT per capita, miles of roadway per capita and per VMT, miles of state highways per capita and per VMT, miles of county highways per capita, and local roads per capita. It is among the top ten counties in the state for miles of roads, miles of state roads, miles of local roads, and urban area. It is among the bottom ten counties in the state for miles of county highways and registered vehicles per capita. Urbanization Milwaukee County is the center of the Milwaukee-Waukesha-West Allis metropolitan area, which is adjacent to the neighboring Racine metropolitan area. 99.81% of the population of the county lives in urban areas, and 92.90% of the land area of the county is urban.1 The eastern boundary of the county is the eastern boundary of the state, which is in the center of Lake Michigan. Road Network Interstate 94 is designated as an east-west highway, carrying traffic west to and from Minneapolis-St. Paul, Minnesota and points west via Brookfield, Waukesha, and Madison, through the county south of Wauwatosa and north of West Allis, through Milwaukee and Oak Creek, and then south to and from Chicago, Illinois and points east via Racine and Kenosha. At the Marquette Interchange, I-94 east turns to the south and I-94 west turns to the west. I-43 is designated as a north-south highway, carrying traffic southwest to and from Beloit via New Berlin, Mukwonago, and Elkhorn. I-43 travels through Greenfield, Milwaukee, Glendale, and along the municipal boundaries of River Hills, Bayside, and Fox Point. To the north, I-43 carries traffic to and from Green Bay via Port Washington, Sheboygan, and Manitowoc. At the Mitchell Interchange, I-43 south turns west and I-43 north turns north. I-43 connects Milwaukee with areas to the south and west of Wisconsin. I-43 is concurrent with I-94 from the Marquette Interchange to the Mitchell Interchange. I-41 is designated as a north-south highway, carrying traffic south to and from Kenosha via Racine, through Oak Creek, Milwaukee, Greenfield, West Allis, and Wauwatosa, and then northwest toward Green Bay via Germantown, Fond du Lac, Oshkosh, and Appleton. At the Mitchell Interchange, I-41 north turns west and I-41 south turns south. At the Hale Interchange, I-41 north turns north and I-41 south turns east. U.S. Highway (USH) 41 is concurrent with I-41. I-794 is a spur that carries traffic east and then south of the Marquette Interchange, eventually becoming State Trunk Highway (STH) 794, carrying traffic toward St. Francis and Cudahy along Lake Parkway and S Pennsylvania Ave. I-894 travels from the Zoo Interchange to the Mitchell Interchange, and it is entirely concurrent with I-41. I-894 is concurrent with I-43 from the Hale Interchange to the Mitchell Interchange. 1 United States Census Bureau. “Percent urban and rural in 2010 by state and county.” Accessed Sept. 29, 2017. https://www.census.gov/geo/reference/ua/urban-rural-2010.html 2 USH 18 begins in Milwaukee at E Michigan St and N Lincoln Memorial Dr. and heads west on multiple roads through central Milwaukee before continuing into Wauwatosa. USH 18 carries local traffic west toward Elm Grove, Brookfield, and Waukesha. STH 145 is a north-south primary arterial that travels from northwest to southeast through the city of Milwaukee. It begins on N 6th St at USH 18 (Wells St) in central Milwaukee and heads north for five blocks and then heads northwest on W Fond Du Lac Ave through the city. It is a multilane divided highway with controlled access through northwestern portions of the city. To the north, STH 145 travels to Menomonee Falls and Germantown. STH 24 and STH 241 both begin at the junction of W Forest Home Ave and S 27th St in Milwaukee. STH 24 is an east-west highway that heads southwest from that junction along W Forest Home Ave to Greenfield, Greendale, and Hales Corners, turning west along Janesville Rd to end at the county line. STH 241 heads south from its junction with STH 24 in Milwaukee along S 27th St to travel along the boundaries of Greenfield, Franklin, and Oak Creek to end at I-41/94. STH 36 is W Loomis Rd, and it is designated as a north-south highway. STH 36 begins at STH 241 in Milwaukee and heads southwest through Greenfield, Greendale, and Franklin on its way to Muskego, Waterford, and Burlington. STH 36 is a primary arterial south of I-43. STH 32 enters the county from the north in a concurrency with I-43 north of W Brown Deer Rd between River Hills and Bayside. It then travels on multiple roads along the Lake Michigan shoreline in Bayside, Fox Point, Whitefish Bay, Shorewood, Milwaukee, Cudahy, South Milwaukee, and Oak Creek. STH 32 carries local traffic south toward Racine. STH 100 goes around the west and south edges of the county along N Lovers Lane Rd in Milwaukee, N Mayfair Rd in Wauwatosa, S 108th St in West Allis and Hales Corners, S Lovers Lane Rd in Franklin, W St. Martin’s Rd in Franklin, and Ryan Rd in Franklin and Oak Creek. USH 45 is concurrent with I-41 north of the Hale Interchange, and it is concurrent with I-43 west of the Hale Interchange to S 108th St. To the north, USH 45 carries traffic to and from West Bend via Jackson. USH 45 is concurrent with I-43 southwest of the Hale Interchange, and then it heads south through Hales Corners to Franklin in a concurrency with STH 100 on S Lovers Lane Rd until the highways reach STH 36. In Franklin, USH 45 then follows STH 36 along W Loomis Rd, after which it follows S 124th St and exits the county toward Union Grove and Bristol. Other highways on the state network include STH 38 (beginning on S 6th St at W National Ave, heading south on S Chase Ave and S Howell Ave through Milwaukee and Oak Creek heading toward Racine), STH 57 (beginning as S Layton Blvd at W National Ave in Milwaukee heading north, turning east on W Highland Ave, turning north on N 17th St, turning northwest on W Fond du Lac Ave, turning north on N 20th St, turning east on W Capitol Dr., and then turning on northwest onto N Green Bay Ave, going through Milwaukee, Glendale, and Brown Deer, and then heading toward Mequon), STH 59 (W National Ave in Milwaukee and West Milwaukee, turning onto W Greenfield Ave in West Allis, and then heading toward New Berlin and Waukesha), STH 119 (the Airport Spur in Milwaukee from I-41/94 to Gen. Mitchell International Airport), STH 175 (beginning on Miller Park Way at W National Ave in Milwaukee heading north, turning northwest on W Lisbon Ave and then onto W Appleton Ave heading toward Menomonee Falls), STH 181 (beginning on S 84th St at W Greenfield Ave in West Allis heading north, becoming Glenview Ave in Wauwatosa, turning northwest onto Harwood Ave and then Harmonee Ave, turning north onto N Wauwatosa Ave, and becoming N 76th St in Milwaukee heading toward Mequon), and STH 190 (Capitol Dr. in Shorewood, Milwaukee and Wauwatosa heading toward Brookfield). 3 Miles of Roadway There are 3,039 miles of public roads in Milwaukee County, of which 253 (8.3%) are state highways, 144 (4.7%) are county highways, 2,623 (86.3%) are local roads, and 29 miles are of another type.2 Vehicle Registrations, Vehicle Miles of Travel (VMT), and Traffic Patterns In 2016, there were 310,843 autos, 27,172 cycles, 50,372 trailers, and 270,899 trucks registered in Milwaukee County.3 Annual VMT in 2016 was 6,955,384,520.4 This VMT figure comprises about 10.9% of the state VMT total, well below the percentage of state population included within Milwaukee County (approximately 16.5%). This is likely a result of shorter commuter distances and greater use of active transport and transit use in the more densely settled county as compared to the state. Although VMT figures are low in a relative sense, Milwaukee County is the largest county in the state and anchors the largest metropolitan region and so traffic volumes are high (in an absolute sense). Figure 1 shows VMT levels on the State Trunk Network (STN), which includes interstate highways, US highways, and state highways. Traffic Volume As can be seen in Figure 1, traffic volumes in Milwaukee County are highest in the central portion of the county, specifically at highways bounded by the Hale Interchange on the southwest, the Mitchell Interchange on the southeast, the Zoo Interchange on the northwest, and the Marquette Interchange on the northeast next to Downtown Milwaukee. US Highway 41 north of the Milwaukee County Zoo and Interstate 94 south of this central loop are other areas of high traffic volume and congestion.