Monthly Archives: September 2014

Department of Transportation Issues Performance Data

At a September 3rd meeting of Department Heads, the Milwaukee County Department of Transportation (McDOT) provided an update on its performance for the year.

The McDOT includes five distinct divisions:

  • The Director’s Office, which provides overall management, financial and planning support,
  • The Airport Division, which includes General Mitchell International Airport, the Timmerman general aviation airport, and the Milwaukee Regional Business Park,
  • The Transit Division, which provides fixed route bus transit and paratransit services across the County,
  • The Highways Division, which provides maintenance for the interstate system and State trunk highways within the County; as well as planning, capital development and maintenance of the County’s trunk highway system and bridges,
  • The Fleet Maintenance Division, which maintains and tracks replacement of all vehicles and major equipment (such as airport snowplows and large mowers in the Parks).

The McDOT has approximately 443 budgeted County positions, plus an additional 1,058 positions in the transit system, which is operated through a contract. 2014 budget expenditures total $274 million, of which only $18.6 million or seven percent is funded by the County property tax levy. The McDOT’s operations are highly dependent on State and Federal revenues, or on user fees in the Airport Division.

The full report is available here. Highlights of the September 3 performance report include:

Airport Division

  • Passenger enplanements at General Mitchell International Airport (GMIA) declined from 4.9 million in 2010 to 3.2 million in 2013, mainly as a result of industry consolidation.
  • Partially as a result of this decrease in enplanements, the cost charged to the airlines by the County to operate the airport rose from $4.12 in 2010 to $8.16 in 2013, and is budgeted to increase again to $9.29 in 2014. The Airport can measure this figure against a benchmark of peer airports that include those in Albuquerque, Buffalo, Cincinnati, Indianapolis and St. Louis. The 2014 benchmark for this peer group is $10.00. This figure is important because it gauges how competitive Milwaukee County’s airport is in attracting new flights.
  • The percentage of revenues earned at GMIA from sources other than the airlines (such as concessions, rental car fees and parking) has remained consistent at between 59 and 65 percent between 2010 and the 2014 budget. The peer group benchmark is closer to 43 percent.

Transit Division

  • After remaining consistent at approximately 30 percent between 2011 and 2013, the percentage of expenses covered by rider fares is on pace to decline to approximately 28 percent in 2014.
  • Passengers per bus hour has continued to decline since 2011, from 29.3 to 26.3
  • After declining in 2012 and 2013, the cost per bus hour estimated at $100.40 in 2014.

Fleet Maintenance Division

  • The number of County-owned vehicles exceeding replacement criteria declined from 207 in 2013 to 177 in 2014. This is important because older vehicles that are beyond their useful life are often more expensive to maintain and spend more time in the shop.
  • After increasing in 2012, the number of accidents Countywide declined in 2013.

Highways Division