Wisconsin governor's 'Pothole Patrol' stops in Superior

May 1—SUPERIOR — Wisconsin's governor stopped in Superior on Wednesday morning, May 1, to fill a few potholes at the base of the Blatnik Bridge.

The stop was part of Gov. Tony Evers' annual statewide "Pothole Patrol" tour to help fix Wisconsin roads and highlight state investments to improve local roads and highways.

The governor was joined by staff from the Wisconsin Department of Transportation, Superior Public Works crews and local officials who pitched in to shovel hot-mix asphalt into holes and tamp it down.

"Superior, obviously, has a longer winter than most of the state, and the winter is tough on roads," Evers said. "We want to make sure the roads are safe."

Since taking office, Evers said the state has improved more than 7,400 miles of roads and 1,780 bridges. Last year, more than 900 miles of road and 200 bridges were improved.

"The governor ran on fixing the ... roads and it's nice to see him taking it seriously, recognizing that every individual pothole matters and changes people's rides to work," Mayor Jim Paine said. "Streets are an important part of our culture and our day-to-day life. They don't build themselves. They have to be fixed."

At the end of the day, road investments are about economic development and making sure people can get to where they are going safely, Evers said.

The budget signed by the governor last year includes $550 million to fund transportation projects underway or under development in addition to $100 million for the local road improvement program and $150 million for the newly created agricultural road improvement program.

"We've made more investments in the last five years that I've been governor than at any time in our previous history," Evers said.

"For projects on the state system, we have 350, 375 projects typically," said Joel Nilsestuen, assistant deputy secretary of the Wisconsin Department of Transportation. "We'll have 425 projects this season, so you'll see more of those orange barrels for local projects — state ones."

However, transportation funding is just one avenue for funding road projects.

"Shared revenue also went up 20% and shared revenue for municipalities and counties can also be used for roads," Evers said.

The increase in shared revenue is a game changer for Superior, Paine said.

"I think we're going to see the effects of it in the next few years," Paine said. "It allowed us to breathe and focus on serious long-term planning in the city."

The focus last year was on public safety, Paine said, but he anticipates the additional state revenue will affect all aspects of the city.

"It'll be all infrastructure all the time for years to come," Paine said. "It was long overdue, but we're putting that money to good use, starting really with streets."