ESTHER’s Transportation Task Force held its monthly meeting on Tuesday, May 21, 2019. Watch this brief report from chair Connie Kanitz with information about:
The new “Connections” transportation option (coming in July to replace Greyhound) along the I-41 corridor between Green Bay and Chicago
A new report from Fox Valley Thrives describing transportation needs in the Fox Valley based on focus groups and other feedback from individuals and businesses.
ESTHER’s Oshkosh Workgroup held its monthly meeting on Tuesday, June 4, 2019. Watch this brief report from chair Jennifer Considine with information about:
Continuing efforts to provide free or reduce-fare transportation for students in Oshkosh schools.
Improving the racial literacy of the task force by reading and discussing together Debby Irving’s Waking up White.
After years of billions of dollars of investment being poured into highway expansion projects, Wisconsin’s transportation system is not meeting our needs. From crumbling local roads to dangerous bridges to public transit routes being closed, our local modes of transportation have suffered because of these misplaced priorities. Additionally, people with disabilities, those who are outliving their ability to drive and those who cannot afford cars are being left out of important opportunities because transportation options are limited.
In this state budget, the legislature can prioritize public transportation, specialized transportation and our local roads – but they need to hear from us to do so! Make a call on June 20!
RSVP HERE to get a reminder the morning of June 20, a list of key legislators to call, and a script you can use: https://forms.gle/es3CZAMEFjxq8ZVK
Linking Health and Transportation: Voices of
Oshkosh Walkers, Cyclists and Transit Users
The Fox Valley Thrives Transportation Team conducted a series of focus groups in the spring of 2019 to understand user perceptions of the Oshkosh area’s transportation system. These focus groups allow for better understanding of the connections between transportation and health, identify what facilities enhance or impede a person’s ability to use walking, biking, and transit in the Fox Valley, and determine what changes might need to be made in the built environment to improve access to transportation.
Fox Valley Thrives, a local chapter of THRIVE WI, is an alliance between East Central WI Regional Planning Commission, ESTHER, and Outagamie and Winnebago County Public Health Departments. Its mission is to advance health equity through aligned efforts, co-learning, and strategic action. The Fox Valley Thrives Transportation Team works to improve health equity and make healthier communities by focusing on the connections between transportation and health.
Appleton Transit Center, 100 E Washington St, Appleton
Join Sierra Club Wisconsin, the Coalition for More Responsible Transportation, ESTHER and other groups in honoring Rosa Parks’ birthday by celebrating Transit Equity Day! Plan to ride the bus on February 4th.
Join ESTHER, Sierra Club Fox Valley and others at a special event at the Appleton Transit Center from 10:30 to 11:30 on February 4. Paper roses will be distributed (in honor of Rosa Parks) along with transit equity buttons to wear. Or watch the Facebook Live feed on the ESTHER Facebook page, starting at 10:30 am.
Talking about transit equity focuses attention on the need for a higher level of investment in transit so people can get to their destinations, even if they don't or can't drive.
Appleton Public Library (Room C), 225 North Oneida Street, Appleton
Postponed/canceled event: This event is canceled as a cautionary measure to protect members of our community. This is an important discussion that ESTHER will reschedule at a later date.
Learn about:
Services currently offered by Valley Transit
Highlights of the Valley Transit Development Plan
Demographic trends in our community that are increasing demands for public transportation
Two transit riders, who will speak of their experiences using Valley Transit.
Transit funding
Together, we will discuss how we can continue to strengthen transit and our community.
Panelists include Sarah Schneider--Valley Transit Mobility Manager, Peter Skopec—WISPIRG plus two Valley Transit riders. Local legislators and candidates are invited.
Free and open to the public.
Help spread the word - download and share the attached flier.
We are seeking people interested in joining with transit riders, local officials, and policy makers to work towards a strong, sustainable, dependable transportation network in the Fox Valley - one that will serve all residents and visitors fairly and well.
Sponsored by Coalition for More Responsible Transportation in Wisconsin.
Speakers include Beth Osborne from Transportation for America and Dennis Grzezinski on highway expansion and transit issues in LaCrosse.
Policymakers often present costly highway expansions as a critical solution to gridlocked traffic and unsafe roadways. But decades of evidence show that building bigger roads makes congestion worse. We also know that highway expansions negatively impact public health and safety, disproportionately harm low-income and minority communities, and undermine alternative forms of transportation in a variety of ways. Learn from expert presenters why bigger, wider roads won’t solve Wisconsin’s transportation problems.
Sponsored by Coalition for More Responsible Transportation in Wisconsin.
Join us as we explore different transit systems in key Wisconsin cities. You'll hear from different individuals on the ease of using public transit in select cities and how these communities are addressing the “Last Mile Challenge,” or the challenge in completing the last segment of a transit trip in order to reach one’s final destination. Discussion and feedback will follow the presentation.
The Coalition for More Responsible Transportation hosts a webinar on July 9, “Transportation and Racial Justice.” This webinar examines the impact that our transportation system has on racial justice in Wisconsin.
If you are unable to use this form or would prefer to call in your RSVP, please contact the Wisconsin Council of the Blind and Visually Impaired at (608) 255-1166 from 8 AM to 3 PM on weekdays and we will register you by phone.
Speakers include:
Dr. Kirk Harris, a faculty member in the Department of Urban Planning, in the School of Architecture and Urban Planning at the University of Wisconsin at Milwaukee. Dr. Harris' academic interests are focused on racial and economic equity, the pedagogy of social justice, constitutional issues in planning law and mediation and negotiation. Dr. Harris will speak about the history and present of transportation in Wisconsin and how it impacts racial justice in the state.
Barbara Little, a transit rider and advocate in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. She will be sharing her personal story as a transit-rider.
Lester Williams, a member of the transportation task force for Milwaukee Inner-City Congregations Allied for Hope (MICAH). He was a rider of the now discontinued JobLines in Milwaukee to reach job opportunities in the surrounding suburbs, and will share his story of job access and transit.
Ashley Moncrief, the YWCA Madison Employment Services and Transit Director. The YWCA provides supplemental transportation for riders who cannot reach their destinations due to lack of transit access and personal vehicles.
After years of billions of dollars of investment being poured into highway expansion projects, Wisconsin’s transportation system is not meeting our needs. From crumbling local roads to dangerous bridges to public transit routes being closed, our local modes of transportation have suffered because of these misplaced priorities. Additionally, people with disabilities, those who are outliving their ability to drive and those who cannot afford cars are being left out of important opportunities because transportation options are limited.
The Fox Valley Thrives Transportation Team conducted a series of focus groups in the spring of 2019 to understand user perceptions of the Oshkosh area’s transportation system. These focus groups allow for better understanding of the connections between transportation and health, identify what facilities enhance or impede a person’s ability to use walking, biking, and transit in the Fox Valley, and determine what changes might need to be made in the built environment to improve access to transportation.
Join Sierra Club Wisconsin, the Coalition for More Responsible Transportation, ESTHER and other groups in honoring Rosa Parks’ birthday by celebrating Transit Equity Day! Plan to ride the bus on February 4th.
Sponsored by Coalition for More Responsible Transportation in Wisconsin.
The Coalition for More Responsible Transportation hosts a webinar on July 9, “Transportation and Racial Justice.” This webinar examines the impact that our transportation system has on racial justice in Wisconsin. 
