The population of La Crosse was 51,818 at the 2000 census. Its 2008 final population estimate was 51,840. The city forms the core of, and is the principal city in the La Crosse Metropolitan Statistical Area, which includes all of La Crosse County and Houston County, Minnesota, with a combined population of 126,838.
As of the census of 2000, there were 51,818 people, 21,110 households, and 10,217 families residing in the city. The population density was 2,573.4 people per square mile (993.4/km²). There were 22,233 housing units at an average density of 1,104.1/sq mi (426.2/km²). The racial makeup of the city was 91.58% White, 1.56% African American, 0.51% Native American, 4.65% Asian, 0.03% Pacific Islander, 0.36% from other races, and 1.31% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 1.14% of the population.
There were 21,110 households out of which 22.0% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 36.1% were married couples living together, 9.3% had a female householder with no husband present, and 51.6% were non-families. 37.0% of all households were made up of individuals and 13.0% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.23 and the average family size was 2.93.
In the city the population was spread out with 18.8% under the age of 18, 24.4% from 18 to 24, 24.9% from 25 to 44, 17.0% from 45 to 64, and 14.9% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 30 years. For every 100 females there were 89.0 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 85.6 males.
The median income for a household in the city was $31,103, and the median income for a family was $43,047. Males had a median income of $30,996 versus $22,076 for females. The per capita income for the city was $17,650. About 7.8% of families and 17.2% of the population were below the poverty line, including 14.5% of those under age 18 and 9.0% of those age 65 or over.
The La Crosse Municipal Airport provides direct scheduled passenger service to Minneapolis, Detroit and Chicago through Delta Airlines and its Northwest links, Mesaba, Compass, and Pinnacle, and to Chicago via American Airlines link American Eagle Airlines. Sun Country and Xtra Airways provide charter service to Laughlin and Elko, Nevada, and other destinations. The airport also serves general aviation for the La Crosse metropolitan area.
The city is served by several major highways and Interstate, including Interstate 90, U.S. Highway 14, U.S. Highway 53, U.S. Highway 61, Wisconsin State Highway 35, Wisconsin State Highway 16, Wisconsin State Highway 33.
On the Mississippi River, cargo is transported to and from this area to St Paul and St Louis, using towboats, primarily moving dry bulk cargo barges for coal, grain, and other low-value bulk goods.
Transportation on the river is also provided by steamboat paddlewheelers, both large and small. In the early years of the city, these were common on the river for both cargo and passenger use. In recent years, the large several-story-high passenger paddlewheelers, such as Delta Queen, Mississippi Queen and American Queen, make stops during the summer at Riverside Park. These large boats take passengers from the South, such as New Orleans and St Louis, on leisure cruises, with their steam calliope playing musical tunes outside, northward to St Paul, Minnesota, with other stops along the way. La Crosse has two smaller paddlewheelers, along with a modern passenger yacht, that take passengers on shorter trips on the rivers.
The Mississippi River Bridge, also known as the Cass St. bridge and the newer Cameron Street bridge (photo with blue arch) both connect downtown La Crosse with La Crescent, Minnesota. These two bridges cross the Mississippi River, as does the Interstate 90 bridge located just northwest of La Crosse, connecting Wisconsin and Minnesota.
Railroad tracks owned by Burlington Northern and Santa Fe Railway (BNSF) pass through La Crosse providing freight service. The former Milwaukee and La Crosse Railroad/Milwaukee Road/Soo Line and now Canadian Pacific Railway runs through the city as well. It provides the track on which the La Crosse Amtrak station is located, and is a stop for the Empire Builder providing cross-country passenger rail service.
La Crosse area has a bus service with routes reaching out to the suburbs and mall areas. The La Crosse MTU served over one million users in 2007.