Rail Passengers Meeting

The Wisconsin Association of Rail Passengers (WisARP) Fall meeting will be held in Madison on October 25th.  Details are below.  

This meeting will be a hybrid meeting, you can either attend in person or via Zoom.

If you are attending in person, you can either register online at 

https://reg.planetreg.com/E910115923160741  (Payment is made via PayPal.  You can pay by credit card via PayPal even if you do not have a PayPal account.)

or you can use the form here and pay by check.  Early registration ends October 20th.  The registration fee goes from $35 to $50 on October 21st.

If you are planning to attend via Zoom (no charge), a registration link will be sent out in a few days.

_____

Wisconsin Association of Railroad Passengers

Fall General Membership Meeting

October 25, 2025

Monona Terrace Community and Convention Center, Madison, Wisconsin

Tentative Agenda
9:00 a.m. Coffee, Pastries
10:00 a.m. – Noon Speakers

Speakers will include

• Rich Kedzior, Passenger Rail Implementation Manager, WisDOT
• Debby Jackson, Executive Director, Transportation Development Association, Madison
• Satya Conway-Rhodes, Mayor, City of Madison
• John Parkyn, WisARP President
• Susan Foote-Martin, WisARP VP-Communication

Noon Lunch
1:00 p.m. – 2:45p.m. Speakers
2:45 p.m. Elections
3:00 p.m. Adjournment

Register today! You can register online at https://reg.planetreg.com/E910115923160741
Or Mail the coupon at the form here to: 

Mark Weitenbeck
3385 S. 119th St.
West Allis, WI 53227-3943

Fee $35 ($50 after October 20th) 

Youth (age 22 and under) $5

Make checks payable to WisARP. For questions, 414-541-1112 or email weitenbeck@sbcglobal.net

Bingo!

You're in luck if you have a bingo card and forgot to turn it in. I will be picking up Bingo cards on FRIDAY AFTERNOON after 3 p.m. from the Transit Center and the La Crosse Public Library, so you still have time to turn yours in! Get it in by 3 p.m. Friday to be included in the drawing to win a prize! We have some great prizes this year including

• MTU donated pass (adult or youth) 
• Wrench & Roll donated bike tune-up 
• Wrench & Roll donated tandem bike rent
• Disability Action Network donated gift card for Ardie's Flipside Pub & Grill
• LATA donated gift card for Pearl Street Books 
• 
  
  Bike helmet
• Books
• Water bottles
• Rain gear 
  
  
  

Lost your bingo card? No problem! Download and print one here: https://drive.google.com/file/d/1ANFItFw5hTm54H45wKr_D9F66dHYIDzH/view?usp=drive_link

 

Save the SMRT

We have a new page: https://lacrosseata.blogspot.com/p/save-smrt.html where we will update information about plans for the SMRT system. Please check it out and do what you can!

This page will have links, info, and updates about the potential ending of SMRT service and how transit advocates can encourage decision-makers to keep it.

We will update as new information is available.

For now, sign the petition at https://tinyurl.com/savethesmrt

Download one to print and circulate at https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSe9w0vB3BWBA3bAF7ih5dqw0broTMK7Kg1HWNoag0uAMW3XVw/viewform?usp=preview

In addition to signing the petition, 

• contact your COUNTY BOARD REPRESENTATIVES (copy the La Crosse County Board if you live in a different county)
• if you are SMRT commuter, contact your workplace
• ask any groups you belong to to write a letter of SMRT support to the La Crosse County Board (if you live in a different county, copy YOUR county board)
• Consider writing a letter to the editor of your local paper. La Crosse Tribune letters must be 250 words or fewer. Submit one online at https://lacrossetribune.com/forms/contact/letter_to_the_editor or email it to letters@lacrossetribune.com. If you email your letter, include your name and address (not for publication). This site has clear advice about writing a letter to the editor: https://reclaimdemocracy.org/effective_letters_editor/

Check out the action page for more info including opportunities for public input.

Week Without Driving is HERE!

WEEK WITHOUT DRIVING is a way for us to consider what life could be like if our plans, our priorities, our public space, our budgets were managed with ALL people, including up to a third of our neighbors, in mind.

Check out the event page at https://tinyurl.com/WWDLaCrosse for all the events and details. Here are some special notes about events and actions you can take this week and going forward to make life accessible for everyone--children going to the library, workers going to a job, seniors going to the doctor,  going to class, someone with a disability going to lunch with friends, someone who can't afford a car going to the park with their kids.

PLEASE CONTACT YOUR CITY COUNCIL MEMBER AND ASK HER/HIM TO RIDE THE BUS WITH YOU and tell them your personal transportation story. So far, only ONE city council rep. has signed up to ride with non-drivers and/or bus advocates. You can find your council person and contact information here: https://www.cityoflacrosse.org/your-government/city-council/city-council-members  If you are not sure which district you are in, here's the current Aldermanic Districts map. Especially if you are a non-driver, your experience and telling your story to decision-makers is VERY important!

PLEASE CONTACT YOUR COUNTY BOARD REPRESENTATIVE AND ASK HER/HIM TO RIDE THE BUS WITH YOU, too. So far,only ONE county board rep has signed up to ride during WWD. Your county board rep can be found here:  https://lacrossecounty.org/countyboard/members  While the MTU is a city-run service, it also serves some surrounding communities but not all. Most importantly, the MTU is not great at serving regional transportation connections like the airport (only limited weekday hours and you have to request a route deviation) and Amtrak (no service within 1/4 mile of the station). In addition, some important workplace/business areas have very limited service including the industrial parks. 

Electeds may sign up here: https://tinyurl.com/wwdlaxleaderridesignup

PLEASE SIGN OUR "SAVE THE SMRT" PETITION! Sign the online form OR download, print, and circulate a paper petition. DEADLINE: OCTOBER 28.

On September 8 at a La Crosse County Board planning meeting, the La Crosse County Administrator presented a plan to cut the SMRT bus at the end of 2025 citing "low ridership" and budget deficits. We are gathering more information about the process but, at this time, we believe not enough information and marketing has been done over the past several years to let people know there even IS a SMRT bus system, not enough public outreach has been done to invite riders' thoughts, and not enough research has been done about possible other funding sources and other transportation options. 

If you are interested in helping to organize, collect information, reach out to decision-makers about this, please contact LATA. 

Remember to Fill Out Your WWD Bingo card to be entered into a prize drawing. Also, those who take the national WWD survey may be entered into a prize drawing.