(The Center Square) – A $34.5 million road reconstruction project for Milwaukee’s 6th Street has lost its funds under President Donald Trump’s budget reconciliation bill, leaving the future of the project in jeopardy until the city can secure new funding.
The funds were originally awarded through the U.S. Department of Transportation’s neighborhood access and equity grant program, but were rescinded by the bill signed into law by Trump on Friday.
Milwaukee Mayor Cavalier Johnson, a Democrat, criticized the rescission as “harmful.”
“This project would have made a high-injury traffic corridor safer, created over 450 good-paying jobs, and created tens-of-millions of dollars in local economic impacts,” Johnson said in a statement. “Unfortunately, congressional Republicans and the White House chose not to support improvements to public safety, good-paying jobs, and economic development.”
While the money was not yet legally obligated, it had been awarded by USDOT and announced by President Joe Biden during a March 2024 visit to the city.
Had the funds continued, a 2.6-mile stretch of the city from National Avenue to North Avenue would have tentatively been under reconstruction until 2031.
The project would have focused on reconnecting “displaced” neighborhoods, improving sidewalks, dedicating transit and bicycle lanes, adding tree canopies, and narrowing streets to remove “unwarranted” pavement and reduce vehicle speeds, according to a City of Milwaukee webpage.
The Wisconsin Department of Transportation’s community maps portal indicates more than a dozen accidents directly related to speeding have occurred on that stretch of 6th Street since 2015.
Additionally, a Badger Institute report found the number of traffic fatalities in Milwaukee County increased by 77% from 2002 (52 deaths) to 2024 (94 deaths), while fatalities in all other Wisconsin counties decreased by 35%.
City engineer Kevin Muhs indicated to the Daily Reporter that while the city would continue the design and “some of” the engineering work, the project’s funds would have to come from a new federal grant or a combination of local and federal funds.
