Happy Mobile Life: The Story

Getting around is the real fix. A city that works for the people who live here all year, with heated stations and winter-ready service that make winter our pride and joy.

Not chance. Not piecemeal. One system, designed on purpose.

Sheboygan is a great place to live. It's a hard place to get around without a car.

We set out to change that, and we did it the slow way. We started with the data and asked where people actually go. We then looked at what's already working in other cities, laid every idea against three simple goals, and kept only the choices that fit together.

The result is the Happy Mobile Life Product: a fare-free bus, van and e-bike network that runs the same schedule every day, from 5 a.m. to 12:30 a.m., with vans all night. It connects every neighborhood, the whole county, and every morning and evening the wider Milwaukee grid, the airport and Amtrak.

This site tells the story of how we got here. Each page covers one part of the thinking: the problem, the principles, the decisions one by one, how we'd pay for it, and why we believe Sheboygan can't do without it.

The short version:

• Most working residents leave the city for work, and most of them drive alone.
• Giving up a new car can free more than a year's rent.
• The money to start is already in the city's long-range plans. It's just pointed at parking.

We think Sheboygan deserves a network that makes going car-free feel like an upgrade. Here's how we designed one.

Read the story