Kenosha State of Downtown Report.indd - The Lakota Group

SECTION 3: PARKING AND TRANSPORTATION
Streetcar
KAT also operates a streetcar loop in Downtown along 54th and
56th Streets (see Figure 3-10). The streetcar loop connects with
the McCarthy Transportation Center and the Metra Station.
During the season the streetcars operate every 15 minutes. The
service does not operate from January through March. The cost
is $1.00 for adults and $0.50 for children.
There are almost 55,000 annual riders.
Daily service is provided using one of five refurbished Toronto
streetcars, each painted in a different color scheme. Operating
hours vary by season, with a shorter schedule provided during
the winter months. The former Toronto streetcars are 1940’s
vintage that were obtained after Toronto retired its fleet in
1995. All of the cars are stored and serviced in McCarthy
Transportation Center, which also provides easy transfers to
local bus routes.
One of the features of the Kenosha system is its attractive rightof-way
through the city. Kenosha offers an excellent example of
how a streetcar line can blend in very well with its surroundings,
and has the appearance of a system that was planned as part of
the community, not added as an afterthought. Much of the
right-of-way has been carefully landscaped.
The streetcar is as much of a cultural, historic and recreation
attraction as it is part of the transit system. It is an iconic
feature of the Downtown that attracts regional, national and
international visitors to Kenosha. There is even a Kenosha
Streetcar Society with members that support the streetcar
system.
The streetcar loop is slightly less than two miles in length.
Kenosha has secured funding to expand the system and may
be able to double the length of the system. System expansion
planning still needs to be initiated, but it is likely that the
streetcar line would be expanded to the north and south. The
expansion will allow for connections to significant land uses,
especially businesses and cultural institutions.
The system expansion would provide opportunities for publicprivate
partnership. The addition of the streetcar in front of
a business establishment or cultural institution would add to
the value of the business or cultural institution. The system
expansion also could be used to encourage redevelopment of
some properties in the Downtown. When the system planning
process is initiated, it will be important to integrate the
transportation planning with land use planning.
A streetcar runs along 56th Street
54
CITY OF KENOSHA, WISCONSIN
KENOSHA DOWNTOWN STRATEGIC DEVELOPMENT PLAN: STATE OF THE DOWNTOWN
PARKING AND TRANSPORTATION