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® September 8 2018 Vol. XX • No. 18
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Inside
City Anxiously Awaits Streetcar Line Opening By Eric Olson CEG CORRESPONDENT
Sometime later this fall, Milwaukee residents will have a new — yet old — way to get around the city’s vibrant and busy downtown. Engineers currently are going through the final testing phase on five modern, elegantly-designed streetcars and how they operate on the newly-installed tracks. If the testing is successful, the 2.5-mi. Phase 1/Lakefront starter route will open to the public in just a matter of weeks. The city has not yet announced a date for that opening, but anticipation is high for the new streetcar system, with an estimated cost of $128.1 million. The hope is that the line can give people a cleaner, quieter and more efficient way to travel around downtown Milwaukee.
Roland Acquires Heavy Equipment Specialists…14
Zoo Interchange Wraps Up on Time, Budget…18
Kubota Unveils New Sidekick UV…58
Table of Contents ................4 Underground Utility, Trenchers & Trench Boxes Section ..........................47-51 Snow & Ice Section ......59-63 Paving Section..............77-91 Auction Section..........95-103 Business Calendar ..........100 Advertisers Index ............102
Kiewit Infrastructure Photo
“This streetcar system, by its nature, is pretty interesting,” said Mike Ethier, Kiewit’s project manager. “You’re literally building a track in the middle of downtown streets. It’s not grade-separated, it’s not separated by traffic, so you’re combining railroad construction and road construction all at once.”
Everything Old is New Again Coincidentally, it was 60 years ago last March when the last regularly-scheduled streetcar service ended in Milwaukee. That concluded an almost 100-year-old history of streetcar service for city residents, starting with horse-drawn service in 1865. Electric-powered streetcars came along in 1890 and ran successfully along several neighborhood routes across the city until the service was Kiewit Infrastructure Photo discontinued for good. Six decades later, the new line represents a Kiewit Infrastructure, a Fortune 500 contractor, based rebirth in electric-powered streetcars, this time with in Omaha, Neb., was awarded $67 million to build The Hop and started work early last year.
see STREETCAR page 76
Mid-America Transportation Projects Win Big Eight outstanding transportation projects from five mid-America states were honored Aug. 29 in the fourth and final regional America’s Transportation Awards competition. The projects were recognized for major achievements, including: engaging small businesses through a “first of its kind” training program; replacing bridges to reconnect communities after major flooding; increasing mobility through a $2 billion overhaul of the most popular Amtrak route in the Midwest; and modernizing an aging freeway to improve safety and economic development. see AWARDS page 74
The Illinois Department of Transportation was recognized for its Interstate 55 and Lake Shore Drive project in the Best Use of Technology and Innovation, Medium category. Now complete, the new $135 million interchange has improved a critical connecting point for the area and greatly improved traffic flow for both Chicago residents and visitors alike.