Record-high numbers for streetcar ridership announced
Summer festivals draw nearly double the expected riders
Milwaukee’s summer festivals and The Hop streetcar appear to be a good match.
From the opening of Summerfest on June 26 to the end of the Bastille Days celebration Sunday, nearly 4,000 people rode The Hop daily, more than double the pre-launch projected ridership, Mayor Tom Barrett said at a news conference Tuesday.
Bastille Days planners had to adjust its boundaries to accommodate the streetcar, which runs on the streets in the Cathedral Square area that stages the festival, but the efforts helped increase access to the festival, Barrett said. On Saturday, numbers reached an all-time daily high with almost 9,000 riders.
“I’m surprised it could carry that many passengers,” Barrett said.
There are no year-over-year comparison numbers since The Hop wasn’t in operation during last year’s Summerfest and Bastille Days, but Barrett said the high demand validates his expansion plans for the system.
Barrett has been working since May to win approval to extend the service to the planned Vel Phillips Plaza on Wisconsin Avenue. That proposal also calls for the start of an engineering analysis aimed at future extensions north to the Bronzeville neighborhood and south to Walker’s Point.
Ald. Bob Bauman joined the mayor in calling for expansions. According to Bauman, the nearly 9,000 riders on Saturday brought the streetcar close to maximum capacity.
“If anything, this is an argument for acquiring more cars, because you basically can’t put many more people on the vehicle,” Bauman said. “These were crushed capacity crowds for almost the entire day of Saturday and a good chunk of Sunday.”
According to Bauman, streetcar ridership will only increase after the opening of a Lakefront line that would drop passengers off within 1,000 feet of Maier Festival Park.
Delays, however, have hampered the Wisconsin Ave. expansion and potentially jeopardized funding for the future north and south extensions. The mayor’s proposal is not expected to be considered by a Common Council committee until July 23 — the final cycle before the full Common Council recesses for the month of August.
Barrett was uncertain if the Vel Phillips Plaza line will be completed in time for the Democratic National Convention, which will convene in Milwaukee next summer.
“I am concerned because as every day passes, the likelihood that we can get the portion, which is a short portion up to Wisconsin Avenue, that diminishes,” Barrett said.
The mayor confirmed, however, that free streetcar rides will be offered during the DNC and remains optimistic about securing federal funding.
“Some people say, is the glass half full, is the glass half empty?” Barrett said. “My view is, just go back to the faucet and fill the glass again.”