The opportunity and challenge? Vital to the region and Wisconsin’s economic health, the I-39/90/94 Corridor between Madison and Wisconsin Dells is reaching the end of its useful life. Traffic volumes are increasing, causing vehicle congestion and backups on the Interstate and decreasing travel time reliability. Crash rates, especially at interchanges, exceed the statewide average.

How a “fix” would benefit the region and the state? The State of Wisconsin has already modernized and expanded I-39/90 from the Wisconsin-Illinois state line to Madison. The Wisconsin Department of Transportation is now studying improvements to I-39/90/94 from Madison to Wisconsin Dells as the next leg in this corridor extending from the state line. Without an improvement project, 26 of the next 30 years will see pavement maintenance projects somewhere in the corridor. This nonstop construction and perhaps emergency Band-Aids will present ongoing travel delays and commercial and recreational traffic congestion.

What would make addressing the issue possible? More than 30 businesses, local governments, and other organizations have formed the Central Wisconsin Interstate Alliance to support the modernization of the interstates between Madison and Wisconsin Dells. CWIA aims to educate policymakers on how a safe, modern I-39/90/94 bolsters the products grown and manufactured in our state and facilitates access to Wisconsin’s renowned outdoor recreation and tourist destinations. Moreover, modernizing the corridor is about safety and reducing crashes and loss of life. Visit CentralWIA.org to learn more about the corridor, the alliance, and its members.

What’s next? CWIA will work with WisDOT and other stakeholders to keep a modernization project for this vital route moving forward. In the short-term, progress includes a final Environmental Impact Statement from the Federal Highway Administration and approval by the state’s Transportation Projects Committee this fall, followed by the project’s inclusion in the final 2025-27 budget.