From the article:
A potential removal of Interstate 794 in downtown Milwaukee will remain under consideration at least into next year along with alternatives that would remove some off-ramps to shrink its footprint, or rebuild the highway as-is.
That was among new details the Wisconsin Department of Transportation shared with mayors and village presidents in Milwaukee County during a Monday meeting. The DOT is currently analyzing nine alternatives to rebuild or remove Interstate 794 roughly between the Milwaukee River and its connection to the north end of the Hoan Bridge. Hearings on those options this summer drew more than 1,700 public comments as stakeholders including some Milwaukee officials pushed to remove the freeway, and communities on the south end of the Hoan Bridge sided with alternatives to preserve it.
Wisconsin DOT project manager David Pittman on Monday said planners are parsing through those public comments and performing a “robust” traffic analysis to gauge the impacts of the various alternatives. By early 2024, a shorter list of options will be released for further public comment, and a final design will be chosen by the end of next year, he said.
The short list to be considered in 2024 will include at least one alternative that would remove I-794. It would also include one or several of the redesign alternatives, Carolyn Seboe, planning group director for engineering and planning consultant HNTB Corp., told the Milwaukee County Intergovernmental Cooperation Council during its Monday meeting.
That means debate over the future of that stretch of interstate will likely continue through next year. Milwaukee elected officials have adopted a downtown plan that calls for a study of removing I-794 and replacing it with at-grade streets. In the DOT’s options, that would mean converting Clybourn Street into a two-way boulevard that would carry some of the traffic that now rides the I-794 bridges between the Hoan Bridge and the Marquette Interchange.