A second CRISI grant in the offing for Milwaukee freight bypass project

By Jeff Stagl, Managing Editor 

Several years ago, Canadian Pacific, Amtrak and the Wisconsin Department of Transportation (WisDOT) were poised to start construction on a key freight-rail project in Milwaukee that would enable Amtrak to add round trips for Hiawatha service between Milwaukee and Chicago. 

But the $91 million Muskego Yard Freight Rail Bypass Project did not get underway in 2022 as planned. Or in 2023. Or thus far in 2024, for that matter. 

The reason? A $36 million funding gap, said WisDOT Passenger Rail Program Manager Richard Kedzior in an email. 

The project partners — which now include Canadian Pacific Kansas City after last year’s CP-Kansas City Southern merger — hope to fill it with another Consolidated Rail Infrastructure and Safety Improvements (CRISI) program grant. WisDOT was awarded a $26.6 million CRISI grant by the Federal Railroad Administration in 2020 for the Muskego Yard bypass project. 

“We’re applying for another CRISI grant at the end of May,” Kedzior said. 

The project calls for updating and reconfiguring the existing track, yard facilities and signals along what’s now CPKC’s rail corridor in Milwaukee’s Menomonee Valley south of Interstate 94. 

Formed in April 2023 after Canadian Pacific and Kansas City Southern merged, CPKC is a key partner in the freight bypass project. Canadian Pacific Kansas City

The work involves creating a new double-track mainline through Muskego Yard that will become the primary route for freight traffic traveling though Milwaukee; installing a centralized traffic control (CTC) system; and rehabilitating a more than century-old structure across Burnham Canal and the Menomonee Valley River to accommodate higher loading capacity and train speed. 

The project is designed to improve both freight- and passenger-rail operations in Milwaukee. The partners aim to boost yard capacity and increase the number of dedicated through tracks; bolster safety by removing the majority of freight traffic through the Milwaukee Intermodal Station (MIS) and routing that traffic to grade separated crossings; improve travel times for freight trains; and facilitate additional passenger trains by freeing up rail capacity through the MIS. 

The Milwaukee/Chicago Hiawatha is one of Amtrak’s busiest routes in the nation and its most-used route in the Midwest, according to WisDOT. The Hiawatha also provides connections to seven other Midwest regional state-supported intercity passenger-rail routes. The project would enable Amtrak to provide up to 11 round trips between Milwaukee and Chicago. 

First proposed about six years ago, the Muskego Yard project was on pace to enter the construction phase in late 2021 or 2022 until funding became an issue. If WisDOT’s application for a second CRISI grant is successful, federal dollars would cover $72.8 million of the project’s cost, with WisDOT providing $10.2 million and Amtrak, $8 million. CPKC is not contributing any funds, Kedzior said. 

For now, determining a construction schedule is difficult without all the funding in hand. Any projected start date would only be speculative now, Kedzior stressed. 

“If funding was secured this year and we started in late 2024 and completed design work in 2025 (which are big ‘maybes’), construction could start in 2026, perhaps only on the outer track and the CTC, plus signals outside of the yard,” he said. 

Design work on the two bridges at either end of the yard is expected to take the longest.  

“A 2027 start might be more likely, with completion in 2028,” said Kedzior. 

Despite the project delays, CPKC remains an active, involved and determined partner. 

“CPKC has been very supportive and patient,” Kedzior said.