To: Scott Walker: A Solution to Improve Public Transit in Milwaukee County, Make it Safer and Keep Costs Down; cc. Mayor Barrett

Dear County Executive Walker and Mayor Barrett:

The problems with the public transit system in Milwaukee County seem to be that it costs too much, does not cover enough routes, does not run often enough, and has the perception of not being safe.

I hope you would consider the following actions to help solve these problems:

1) No FREE PARKING for County or City employees -- including all managers, elected officials, police and deputies. (including all contract employees), and MPS.



2) Each of the above to receive a monthly pass for the Milwaukee Transit System at NO COST to them (per law they must live in Milwaukee county or city -- so it should be convenient for them).



3) If any of the above insist upon driving, they would be charged $20 per day for parking on county or city property. (for handicapped folks for whom taking the bus would be overly burdensome, they would only be charged $2 per for parking)



4) To discourage the above from parking on the streets near where they work, a zone of three blocks from every county, city facility or school where the above are employed will have a two hour parking limit, except for residents of the street, who will be given free vehicle stickers that name the street they are a resident of.



5) The revenue from employees who chose to pay the $20 per day for parking will be used to offset the costs of the monthly pass.



6) Presuming that a lot of space currently used for parking will no longer be needed, it can be sold by the county and city to create a trust that generates more revenue for the costs of the monthly passes.



7) With all the additional ridership from all parts of Milwaukee County and Milwaukee City, and the additional revenue to the bus system, the bus system can be run more often, and have routes that cover the entire county.



8) With elected officials, Managers and Executives riding the buses, there will be "eyes on" quality checks on each route.



9) With all the County Deputies and Milwaukee Police Officers riding the buses, there will be increased security.



10) The transit system can cancel its contract with the private security firm that currently patrols the buses for even more savings.



11) Teachers riding the buses will help with the problems with students --- and will free up parking space that the school system can also sell.



These are just initial thoughts and I am sure that between the talented people that work for Mr Walker and Mr Barrett, and at MPS, this program can be fully refined.



WHAT DO YOU THINK ? YOUR COMMENTS ARE WELCOME !

Can I get an "Ament" for Brother Walker

Current Milwaukee County Executive, Scott Walker, is never reluctant to criticize his predecessor, Tom Ament as being all too willing to waste taxpayer money --- and participating in an "old boy" club, with top County officials helping to feather each others' beds.

Walker has run on promises to open up Milwaukee County government and end the cronyism of the Ament years.

But with a little slight of hand, we find that Walker has now joined the Crony Club, and is not above trying to slide through a few little perks --- like 26% pay raises --- for his fellow county officials.

Without bothering to consult with the Milwaukee County Board Members, Walker has implemented pay raises of 26% for his Chief of Staff, 11% for the Airport Director, and 12.5% for the Facilities Management Director.

In the meantime, Walker is laying off hundreds of union county workers, and continues to cut back funding for parks, buses and other county services.

In his drive to provide big paychecks for the chosen few at the top -- Walker continues to push for privatizing or selling as much of the county's resources as possible --- including Mitchell International Airport, even though the airlines and passengers who actually use the airport, are very happy with the county employees who have done a great job in running it ------- and it draws no money from the county.

It will be interesting to see how long the Citizens for Responsible Government tolerate Walker's current antics. This is the group that organized re-call elections that toppled the Ament regime, and helped to bring in Walker as a supposed "Reformer".

Unless of course, the CRG regards backdoor dealing and slight of hand double digit salary increases for a chosen few top officials, as "reform"

WHAT DO YOU THINK ? YOUR COMMENTS ARE WELCOME!