THE WEEK AHEAD

Monday

Events Committee 6:00 tonight at Rockhound Brewing Company. Preparations have begun for the winter bike fashion show, help us make it great. 

Wednesday

Transportation Commission 5:00 – 7:00 pm  215 Martin Luther King, Jr. Blvd Room 207, Madison Municipal Building.  There will be a presentation about Safe Routes to School. 

Cyclocross Practice  5:30 pm at Aldo Leopold Park Madison Parks, Capitol Off Road Pathfinders, L5 and Neff Cycling are joining up to offer a huge calendar of free cyclocross practice opportunities this year.

You have 2 options to choose from at each practice: a beginners clinic and an intermediate/advanced practice. It’s your choice, or you could try both! All practices are free and open to the public. All ages and abilities are welcome (boys and girls); anyone old enough to ride a bike and take instruction fairly well. More info is available here. 

Thursday

Erik's Bike Shop MTB Demo at Middleton Bike Park 4:00 pm Join for a free mountain bike demo. Erik's staff will be on hand to help you find the right Specialized or Santa Cruz mountain bike and get you set up for a ride.  More info is available here. 

Send us your events

Reminder that we have a Community Bike Calendar on our website. If you would like to add something, send it to us. We can't guarantee it will be featured in the weekly update, but at least it will be available for people to see. 

This past week

August in Madison, when everyone is out on bikes, and city meetings slow down. We did have one great event this past weekend. Adonia Lugo came to Madison to talk about her work on race and bicycling. We helped to organize a nice community ride n Saturday. She then did a reading from her book and took questions. If you missed it, but are interested in this subject, you can either buy the book or get in line to check it out from the library. 

The week ahead

Monday

The Transportation Planning and Policy Board will meet at 5:00 pm in Room 215 of the Municipal Building. On the agenda is: 

• Update on the Wilson St project
• Nelson Neighborhood Development Plan (with some new pedestrian-bike connections)
• Oscar Meyer Special Area Plan (there are no documents available, but additional bike-ped connections are needed in this area.)
• Projects that will be submitted for Transportation Alternatives Program funding (federal bike-ped funding). These include path connections, over/underpasses, and paths along roadways. Not all of these will necessarily be funded, but this is what the city is requesting.

Tuesday

The Madison Bikes Communications Committee will meet at Memorial Union Terrace at 6:00 pm. If you are interested in attending or helping with communications, drop us a line at Media@madisonbikes.org/. We always love to have new volunteers, and helping on one of the committees is a great way to see what we are all about and help out the biking community.

Wednesday

The Madison Area Transportation Planning Board (MPO) meets at 6:30 pm at the Water Utility Building at 119 E. Olin Ave. There isn’t anything specifically about bicycling on the agenda, but they will be discussing a couple of items that could affect biking. One item is plans for Hwy M between Hwys Q and 113 – across the top of Lake Mendota. They will also be discussing the Transportation Improvement Plan – the five-year plan for transportation for the region. Documents on these items are not available as of this writing, but they should be uploaded here before the meeting.

Send us your events

Reminder that we have a Community Bike Calendar on our website. If you would like to add something, send it to us. We can't guarantee it will be featured in the weekly update, but at least it will be available for people to see. 

What are we talking about on online?

The photo at the top of the post was prompted by a discussion on a different Facebook group about bad bicycle parking. I have an entire file on my computer labeled "Bike Parking Fail." What made me think of this is that there was a long discussion on our Facebook group about signs outside Monroe St businesses asking bicyclists to please walk their bikes (on the sidewalk.) When Monroe St was being reconstructed, we pointed out the need for safe and comfortable bike facilities ON the street where destinations are located (as opposed to the SW Path, which does not connect directly to Monroe)-- one way to keep bicyclists from using the sidewalk. Unfortunately, that didn't happen, so people coming from and going to businesses sometimes bike on the sidewalk. 

There was also a very long discussion about passing pedestrians on shared paths. I hear a lot of grumbling from pedestrians about being passed too closely or by bicyclists going too fast. As our paths get more popular and more people use them for transportation, we all have to remember that the paths are shared, not just for bicyclists. And maybe we need more space so there will be fewer conflicts. After all, that's what happens when highways get crowded -- they get expanded. 

One of our regular FB contributors had a nasty experience with the driver van belonging to a local business while riding on the Mifflin bike boulevard. When he stopped there to complain, it turns out the driver was also the manager and co-owner. This business is in a very bike/ped friendly neighborhood and frequently has full bike racks out front. If we can't rely on these folks to be our allies and treat us well, what's the world coming to?

Another slow week for our weekly update, but we do have a highlight on Saturday!

The bike week starts with Mondays Around Monona, a chill social bike ride around Lake Monona. The ride has been around for a long time, but this week it has a new start and end destination: The ride will start at 5:30p sharp at Capital City Trail and Sugar Ave  and end at the newly redeveloped Garver Feed Mill where people will gather for dinner and/or drinks.

On Saturday, I'm very excited about an event centered around the idea of mobility justice with anthropologist and activist Dr. Adonia Lugo! Organized by the JUST Bikes Coalition, there will be a community bike ride, lunch, and a book talk about "Locating ourselves in Mobility Justice: Planning for multiracial and just future streets." Adonia Lugo is a cultural anthropologist who did her doctoral research on biking and bike activism in Los Angeles. One of the ideas she develops is a tension between physical infrastructure and human infrastructure, as well as the connections (and tensions) between bike activism and environmental, social, and racial justice. This is the schedule for the day:

9:00 am: Helmet Fitting & Bike Checks in the Villager Mall parking lot
10:00 am: Neighborhood Bike Ride followed by lunch
11:30 am: Book Talk (Locating Ourselves in Mobility Justice: Planning for Multiracial and Just Future Streets)/Discussion with Adonia Lugo Cultural anthropologist at the Goodman South Library

If you can't make the event, check out Dr. Lugo's book "Bicycle/Race" or listen to a WORT interview with her from last year.

Also keep in mind that the CrossFit Games are happening this week. Be prepared for more people riding, running, and walking on our trails and paths.

As always, you can find an overview of all bike events on our Community Bike Calendar. Email us at info@madisonbikes.org to add your events. And if you value our newsletter and other work, consider donating to Madison Bikes.

Last Week

On Sunday, a 56-year-old woman riding her bicycle tragically lost her life at the intersection of the Military Ridge State Trail and County Highway PD in Verona. It’s a reminder of just how vulnerable we are on our bikes and the need for everyone to be on the lookout for each other, especially at intersections. 

On Thursday, the first public meeting around the Garver Path took place. This path is only part of a series of planned paths to help connect residents of several north east Madison neighborhoods to the Capital City Path. The first leg would extend from the Capital City Path by the Garver Redevelopment up to Milwaukee Street along Starkweather Creek. Eventually the path will connect with the Marsh View Path which is an existing car-free path across State Highway 30.

This Week

Monday, July 22,

Freewheel Community Bike Shop will be providing free bike tune-ups at the Lakeview Library on the north side Monday and Tuesday in the afternoon. You can read more about this event here.

Bike Fitchburg is having their monthly meeting. The meeting starts at 6:30 PM at Fitchburg Public Library, 5530 Lacy Rd in Fitchburg.

Wednesday, July 24,

The Wisconsin Department of Transportation (WisDOT) is hosting a public input meeting around using the center medians as extra travel lanes during peak hours. The meeting will take place from 5 PM to 8:30 PM in the Community Room at The Village on Park at 2300 South Park Street. You can read more about this here.

The Transportation Commission (TC) is meeting in Room 207 of the Madison Municipal Building at 215 Martin Luther King Jr. Blvd. at 5:00 PM. Topics on the agenda include reconsideration of speed humps planned for Spaight Street and Lake Point Drive, and topics for the Tuesday, August 27 Joint Meeting between the TC and the TPPB. Read the full agenda here.

Friday, July 26,

The Wisconsin Bike Fed is teaming up with Wheels for Winners to host the Kennedy Heights Pride Ride, a family-friendly group ride through the north side. This event will start at the Kennedy Heights Community Center at 199 Kennedy Heights in Madison. Free food and water, and free repairs courtesy of Wheels for Winners, will be provided. The cookout and neighborhood party starts at 12:30 PM and the ride will start at 2 PM. Childrens bicycles and helmets will be available to be lent out, and vegetarian options will be available. Read more about this ride here.

We have an important city meeting coming up with week as well as a number of Madison Bikes committees. A reminder that all Madison Bikes meetings are open to the public, and you are welcome to attend. We are always looking for people to help on our committees, so stop by if something looks interesting.

Monday

The Madison Bikes Events Committee will meet at 6:00 pm at Rockhound Brewing, 444 S Park St.

Tuesday

The Madison Bikes Communications Committee will meet online at 6:00 pm. We normally meeting in person, but we moved July’s meeting because of the July 4^th holiday. If you would like to participate in the meeting, drop an email to Heather Pape: heather@madisonbikes.org

Wednesday

The Transportation Commission will be meeting and considering the final plans for the S Broom St and W Wilson St project that is scheduled for next year. This will be an important project with the potential to improve bicycle connections on the south side of downtown. More on that project in last week’s Monday Update.

The commission will also be looking at the initial geometrics for the University Ave project that will be built in 2021. This project will run from Campus Dr to Shorewood Blvd. Note that bicycle facilities on the south side of the road are NOT included at this time, despite a number of people mentioning the need at the June public information meeting. More on this project later this week.

What are we talking about on Facebook?

The Madison Bikes Community group always has some interesting discussions going on. In the last week, people have posted about unexpected construction on their commuting routes, why bicyclists sometimes avoid paths, and common myths about bike lanes. Check out the discussion and join in.

Midwestern summer is here in all its glory: Festivals, heat, humidity, mosquitoes, thunderstorms.

Let's start this newsletter with -- a plug for another newsletter: For the latest information on construction and detours that affect people on bikes in Madison straight from the source, check out the city's Bike Madison newsletter. The newsletter has been around for a long time, but since Renee Callaway was hired as Pedestrian and Bike Administrator, the newsletter has become much more active again. So if you want to know what's happening with the construction at First St, the Blair/Nolen/Williamson/Wilson intersection, or elsewhere, consider subscribing to Bike Madison: https://www.cityofmadison.com/bikeMadison/getInvolved/newsletter.cfm

A few quick reminders:

If you haven't done so, please help us make Madison Bike Week better by taking our short survey. We already have over 100 respondents, but it'd be great to get some more. Link to the survey: https://forms.gle/fgcXi6Rwh8NVCs1e8

And it's also not too late to support our Pinney Library Rack Raising campaign. Show your support for biking and our public libraries by contributing to our fundraiser. Our goal is to raise $1000 for the new Pinney Library, and we are over halfway there, with $505 raised. You can donate on Facebook or on our website. Thanks to everyone who has already made a contribution.

This (short) week

Mondays Around Monona are back! Join this social ride around Lake Monona with our former board member India. All genders welcome. Ride starts at 5:30pm at the intersection of the Cap City Trail and S. Fair Oaks Ave. Ride ends at Tex Tubb's Taco Palace (2009 Atwood Ave) Gather for food and/or drinks after the ride.

What a two-way protected bike lane may look like on Broom/Wilson

On Monday, the Transportation Policy and Planning Board (TPPB) is meeting. On their agenda:

• Adopting the interim recommendations for South Broom Street and the 300 block of West Wilson: Much work has happened around Wilson and Broom Streets, further refining designs that allow low-stress bike access to our downtown. This includes an addendum to the interim recommendations that just came out last week. We will cover this topic in more detail later.
• Discussion items include better bus access to the new Pinney Library, planning for policy around electric scooters, and reviewing the Department of Transportation's latest work plan.

The TPPB meeting is taking place at the City-County Building, Council Chambers, starting at 5 pm.

On Tuesday, the Madison Bikes Communications Committee has their regular meeting. Please email heather@madisonbikes.org if you're interested in attending.

Another edition of the weekly bike repair clinic at the Latino Workforce Academy is happening on Wednesday.Wheels for Winners, the Latino Academy, and the Bridge-Lakepoint-Waunona Neighborhood Center are offering free bike checks from 5-6:30pm

Clínicas de reparaciones básicas de bicicletas: Tienes una bicicleta que necesita reparacion basica? La Academia Latina y Wheels for Winners te pueden ayudar con la reparacion. Trae tu bicicleta los miercoles de mayo, junio, julio y agosto. Lugar: Academia Latina, 1917 Lake Point Dr.

And on Saturday, ride around Lake Monona with Cafe Domestique -- over and over and over again.

The Lake Monona 100 started as a joke. What’s the most ridiculous way we could spend the day riding our bikes? Where could we ride, for a hundred or so miles, but also have lots of stops for coffee, beer, snacks, swimming, parks, more beer, maybe stop at home for a nap, etc.? How about a bike ride where you’re never more than like 6 miles from a bike shop, and could take a taxi to said shop in case you got a flat tire?

Enter the Lake Monona 100. One hundred miles of bike riding on Madison’s most popular bike route. Or not a hundred miles. You choose how far you ride, where to stop, who to ride with.

As always, you can find an overview of all bike events on our Community Bike Calendar. Email us at info@madisonbikes.org to add your events. And if you value our newsletter and other work, consider donating to Madison Bikes.

With fanfare, food and fun, MADISON BCycle, in cooperation with the City and Trek Bicycles, rolled out a brand-new fleet of about 300 electric-assist rental bikes on June 18. With this milestone, Madison became the first city in the U.S. to convert to a fully electric bike share system.

Billed by MADISON BCycle as “...taking you farther, faster,” the upgraded e-fleet is now operational. As someone who participated in the roll-out (and full disclosure, I received a free helmet and pizza as a bonus), it was exciting to be part of the ride around Capitol Square and initial delivery to the bike stations. Since then, I have had a chance to give the bikes and the system more of a work-out. Here are my impressions after a few days, more than 20 miles, and about half-a dozen rides.

Why You Should Trust Me

I have owned three different types of E-bikes over 10 years. In addition, I ride a regular road bike about a thousand miles annually. I was a light user of the old MADISON BCycle system. However, people of different sizes and expectations might feel differently about their own riding experience so don’t hesitate to climb aboard and discover for yourself what you like and don’t like about the new system.

Rental and Membership Costs

While a single use bike pass can be expensive, $5 for 30 minutes (more than a bus ride!), MADISON BCycle offers a $20 monthly pass and a $100 annual pass, both offering unlimited 60-minute rides. If you are part of the University or select other organizations, annual passes are as low as $30.

Finding an E-Bike

The new E-bike system is based entirely on the old system. If you were familiar with the old system everything remains in place. But these are not the same bikes. They can go further and faster and thus, ideally, the new system would be more spread out. While the Campus and the Isthmus are well covered, gaps that existed outside the core are even more obvious now that increased range and higher speeds make more extensive geographic coverage desirable.

It’s best to view the system as a work in progress. Hopefully, induced demand initiated by the new bikes will promote the establishment of more strategically located stations (park-and-ride anyone?) in more parts of the City and County. More and more people are going to find out that an eight-mile E-bike is a no-sweat pleasure and will wonder why so few stations and rentals are available to and from where they live, work and want to go. If these bikes prove popular, and I expect they will, adequate availability at peak times will be a challenge to initially achieve. Also, E-Bikes can currently be rented only by adults with a credit card. The lack of access for youth remains an issue. I also expect the bikes to go into hibernation in the fall.

Unlocking a Bike

Although payment and unlocking can be done via each station’s kiosk, the preferred method for pass members is the BCycle card, or even better, the BCycle app. The app is super easy to use, tells you where the stations and bikes are and unlocks your choice of bikes within a couple of seconds of your selection.

I did experience one glitch at Memorial Union, whereby one remaining E-bike wouldn’t release from the dock. A call to the help line (answered by a live person!) verified the glitch but could not successfully be unlocked. Hopefully this is an infrequent occurrence because it was frustrating to know a bike in good working order was there in front of me but unavailable. Fortunately, an alternative station a couple of blocks away, had several bikes. I also found the app would not display GPS routes of previous trips listed in the My Trips section. It is not a necessity to have trip history but for some it’s a nice perk. I assume that functionality will be fixed before long.

Another issue if you use the kiosk LCD screens to purchase a pass is the poor quality of the screens on at least some of the stations. They have not aged well and have become opaque. In bright sunlight they can be quite hard to read. It may be as simple a fix as changing covers, I am not sure, but it’s disappointing the rollout of the spanking new E-bikes was not accompanied by better maintenance of the old docking stations. Clearly, the app is the way to go. It makes finding and checking out a bike a snap. But for curious new users the kiosk display issues are a barrier.

[Madison BCycle sent the following note: "We are in the process of replacing the kiosk LCD screens and will be working on that this week. Unfortunately, all were not replaced by the launch."]

Speaking of old docking stations, the bikes are not currently charged while at the docking stations. I was told by BCycle support they can tell when a docked bike is out of power and dispatch a service visit to swap in a fresh battery, but I do not believe they know when a battery is merely low. Clearly, there are station costs and bike design issues preventing charging while docked. But the tradeoff is that bikes are often at partial charge levels and may need persistent attention if they are heavily used.

This brings up the range and assist level issues. The actual range of a fully charged E-bike depends on many factors such as battery size and age, ambient temperatures, terrain, weight of the rider, bike and cargo, speeds, and the level of electric assist (you have to pedal to get the assist in this so called “pedelec” system, there is no throttle). The system in use in Madison sets a fixed assist level at the highest level, called Turbo; maxing out at 17 MPH while most Bosch control systems I have used offer four modes of increasing assist levels. The system choice to fix the assist at the highest level offers the easiest and perhaps the simplest riding experience, but not the most flexible nor the most efficient as mileage per charge decreases greatly at the higher assist setting. The result is that all the bikes in the system will have less range and will need charging/battery swapping more often than bikes allowing user selection of assist level.

It also means that people who might like to get the greater exercise benefit from moderately lower assist levels are unable to do so unless they power off completely (which remains an option). Personally, I think users would be capable of quickly figuring out how best to use variable assist for different situations and I am disappointed at this “dumbing down”. Some inexperienced users, for example, may find the Turbo mode too powerful at lower gears and prefer a more gradual introduction. Experienced users might choose a lower assist level to extend range on a partially charged battery or to more easily stay even with a slower non-E-bike user. The point is choice and control have been taken away for the sake of ease of use with little evidence that people won’t quickly figure out the benefits of variable assist levels, if it were available.

Bike Design and Fit

These bikes are “one size fits all” and so they must accommodate people of all shapes and sizes. This presents design challenges and invariably some compromises. In general, I think the designers have done a very good job as they reportedly can fit riders from 5’ to 6’ 5”. The bikes are easy to mount and dismount. The seat posts have a great range of travel and are easily adjustable and lockable.

However, as a 5’10” male, I experienced two nagging issues that I think might be problems for many others as well. The first of these is the kickstand placement. For my US size 10 shoes (average for men), I found the clearance from my heel to the kickstand mount to be inadequate. Comfortable placement on the pedal would often result in my heel striking the kickstand mount with each pedal revolution. For those with even bigger feet this could be problematic.

The second nagging comfort issue was the rotational bell control on the left side of the handlebar. Close inspection reveals the bell control is slightly different in shape and materials than the shift control on the right as the former causes the thumb and pointer finger to rest heavily against a hard-plastic ring on the bell control. The gear shift rotator, on the right side of the handlebar, is flatter and softer and feels more comfortable when grasping and riding. Depending on hand size and how you grip the handle, your experience may vary.

The bikes are step through style and other than the new powered capability, look and ride like the old “red” bikes. In fact, since they weigh about the same as the old bikes, it is possible to leave the assist off and ride for shorter distances if one is so inclined (or you run out of battery charge!). The power assist works only when you pedal and below 18 MPH – no throttle here. Range will vary, but on a full charge 30 miles is about average and in line with my experience with other Bosch systems.

Power ON!

Powering up the bike requires one button push, marked with a sticker. The symbol on the sticker is somewhat confusing. Not a major issue, I just thought the main power button could have been colored red as the stickers can easily come off as they age.

I recommend users power up the bike they want before making your bike selection from the dock in order to see whether the battery status is adequate for the trip you have in mind. It is possible that a previously used bike could be down to 10-20% charge or less and thus unsuitable for an 8-mile ride. Unless you plan on finishing your ride on muscle power!

Getting Underway

There are three gears, 1-3. I found they selected easily and engaged quickly. Gearing up to speed occurs rapidly with the assist on level ground. A few seconds in each of the lower gears and I found myself cruising in third at about 15 MPH. An internal geared hub design and protected chain mean the likelihood of having to deal with a dirty chain or cranky derailleur is non-existent. Feel free to ride in your Sunday finest.

The bikes handled well. I felt in full control and was glad I had the dual roller brake system on a downhill 30 MPH test road run. At normal speeds, the feel was subjectively better than the old red bikes. There is no dedicated suspension dampening, but the bike itself seems well built for the paved and occasional light potholes and cracks in the commuter biking environment.

Safety

The built-in bell is a nice touch to make sure bikes and pedestrians know you are there. At “Turbo” assist level on even ground, I think people will be pedaling these bikes at around 12-15 MPH. Most road bikers can easily exceed this speed, but your average recreational cyclist will probably be moving a little slower, at around 8-12 MPH. So non-E-bike users should expect more people riding these bikes with them at these higher, but not unprecedented speeds. E-bike users should be courteous as you safely pass and control speeds to conditions and other users in their riding environment.

I won’t dwell much on the helmet issue. I understand clearly that bike share systems don’t work well when helmets are mandated. The benefits of increased riding and travel speeds of E-bikes must be balanced against injury risk. But I also understand that as a matter of biomechanics, with higher speeds, head injury risks will go up if you do crash. We accept other higher risks than that of biking short distances without a helmet in many other recreational and transport activities. At any rate, in Wisconsin it’s a personal choice. I prefer the added protection as often as possible. If you feel the same, remember to bring your own helmet with you. They are not available at the docking stations.

One important safety item that I felt was missing was a rear-view mirror. Experienced cyclists use them judiciously to locate oneself in the traffic stream and I was rather uncomfortable without one (where exactly is that bus behind me?!). Would less experienced riders use them and find them helpful? I suspect so and would like to see at least one mirror mounted on the left side (handlebar?) despite the design and maintenance challenges.

Final Thoughts

I am pleased Madison has made the leap to an all E-bike system. They are going to get used more by more people and will show many the inherent benefits of an E-bike sharing system. However, one of the biggest external drawbacks that does not change with the introduction of E-bikes is that the bikes are still ridden on Madison’s partial network of mixed used streets that contain minimal low-stress road links (i.e., few protected lanes). As nice a step up as the new E-bikes are, riders still must put up with sharing many routes with cars, trucks and buses. E-bikes alone will do very little to encourage many of the interested but concerned potential bike riders to now venture out on the roads. Yet, as the numbers of people using alternative mobility devices (including E-bikes, scooters, skates, wheelchairs, skateboards and other mobility devices of all types) continue to skyrocket, they will all be demanding safer routes. Madison, a leader in bike sharing and urban trails, is falling behind in responding to the numbers, safety and environmental justifications for more protected mobility lanes. Addressing this gap needs to be a priority for the City to ensure long-term success for its proud new E-bike sharing system.

Last Week

The entire fleet of BCycles were replaced with sleek new electric BCycles. If you're reading this you’ve probably already seen several being ridden around town. We'll have a review of the new bikes later this week.

Madison Bikes also launched a fundraising campaign for the new Pinney Library, and we hope to raise $1000 for the library and in the process have our organization’s name printed on one of the new bike racks going in there. You can read more about this effort on Madison Bikes' website page about the fundraiser, or Madison Bikes’ Facebook Fundraiser page. It looks like we are very close to our goal of $1000 and your contribution to this effort would be greatly appreciated.

This Week

Monday, June 24,

Bike Fitchburg is having their monthly meeting. The meeting starts at 6:30 PM at Fitchburg Public Library, 5530 Lacy Rd in Fitchburg.

Wednesday, June 26,

The Transportation Commission (TC) is meeting in Room 207 of the Madison Municipal Building at 215 Martin Luther King Jr. Blvd. at 5:00 PM. Topics on the agenda include funding for three battery packs for electric Metro buses, a discussion of topics for the August 2019 joint Transportation Policy and Planning Board and Transportation Commission meeting, and discussion of the annual work plan for the TC for 2019/2020. Read the full agenda here.

For people more interested in a movie, there will be a screening of Return to Earth, a film by Anthill Films and sponsored by Trek. Watch the trailer here. Return to Earth is a cinematic journey into the simple act of living completely in those moments by riding bikes. The screening will be at the Barrymore Theater at 2090 Atwood Ave. Doors open at 5:30 PM and the screening starts at 7:30 PM. Tickets are $15 in advance and $20 day of. All proceeds benefit our local trails. Read more about this film on the Facebook events page.

At 6:00 PM there will be the first Public Information Meeting (PIM) on the Henry Vilas Park Master Plan. These Master Plans determine how the park will be used and developed in the next few decades, so input from interested members of the public is valuable to the city. This process provides a unique opportunity rethink how people access and use the park.  The meeting will take place at the Vilas Park Shelter, 1602 Vilas Park Drive. Read more about the master planning process on the City’s Parks Projects web page. The City has also put together a Facebook Events page for the meeting.

Saturday, June 29,

A Pride Ride will start at Cafe Domestique at 10 AM. The ride will be about 14 miles around the capitol and around Lake Monona. B-Cycle bikeshare bikes will be available to rent. Everyone is welcome to join the ride. Read more about the ride on their Facebook Events page.

It's Electric! 

The electric BCycle bikes that were tested out last fall will be rolling out across all of Madison on Tuesday. 

Monday

BikeDane Meeting at Lussier Center at Lake Farm Park from 1 - 2:30pm. Meeting to discuss 2019 bicycle-related budget items and provide you with updates on projects under construction and new projects in the design and planning phase. Your continued participation and recommendations is crucial to helping us be a more bike-friendly community.

BCycle will be unavailable for the evening commute, and Tuesday morning commute, while the red bikes are swapped out for the new white ones.

Tuesday

BCycle goes all electric - The launch will occur from 11 am- 1 pm and include demos and remarks by Madison Mayor Satya Rhodes-Conway and Trek President John Burke.

Wednesday

The Madison Bikes Advocacy Committee will meet at 6:00 pm at Bendyworks, 106 E Doty St, 2nd floor. If you want to work on issues with the city and help shape our agenda, come on by. We can help you communicate effectively with your elected officials and city staff.

The Madison Area Transportation Planning Board is meeting in the Water Utility building (room A-B), 119 E. Olin Ave at 6:30 pm.

Thursday

Yeti Cycles Demo 4:00 – 7:00pm Come to Quarry Ridge to ride the newest offerings from Yeti.

Saturday

Join the Bombay Bicycle Club for the 2019 Madison Tour de Donut ride. Unlike a certain other very horrible hilly ride, the goal of the Tour de Donut is to eat as many delicious donuts over a mostly flat 25-mile ride in and around Madison. Sign up and pay, only online.

Prizes will be awarded for the most donuts eaten over the ride!!! Training Tip: don’t eat breakfast before you ride.

Meet on the west side of Westmorland Park (4114 Tokay Blvd, Madison) along Gately Terrace.

Join Revolution cycles for Swift Campout. Swift Campout is a global call to go bike-camping on June 22nd, 2019. For the fifth year in a row thousands of adventurous spirits will load camping gear on their bikes for a weekend adventure.

Here’s the scoop. We’re planning to roll out from the bike shop (2330 Atwood Ave) by 12pm Saturday, June 22nd, and riding 31 leisurely, no drop miles.

Bike Week is a wrap!

Wow. We can’t even begin to recap everything that happened. We got some great press coverage. The weather was fantastic last all week, and there were events all over Madison – and beyond – put on by many, many partners and venues. Even after the week started, people were sending us additional events, and we ended up with over 75 events on the calendar. You can see photos of all the fun on our Instagram account.

We wrapped up with a rockin’ party at Brittingham Park with music by DJ Robin Davies, tables from bike groups and nonprofits, food carts, Klarbrunn donated by Willy St Co-op, and beer donated by Hop Garden, Ale Asylum, Working Draft, Karben4, and Funk Factory.  

From Ride the Drive through all the commuter stations, Bacon on the Bike Path, Bratcakes, Cheddar-Bacon Waffles, and so many more, we would like to once again thank our sponsors: Trek/Bicycle, Unity Point Health/Meriter/UW Health, Pacific Cycle/Schwinn, Planet Bike, Slow Roll/Giant, MG&E, and the City of Madison. We also couldn't have done it without our volunteers and all the people who showed up. Whether you tried biking just once last week or it's a regular habit for you, thank you all!

The week ahead

We’re sort of glad to have a slow week coming up after all the fun and activity of Bike Week. But there are still important meetings happening that will shape our city and bike routes for years to come. Both the West Wilson/Broom project and the University Ave reconstruction are incredibly critical links in our bicycle network. Your input is important.

Wednesday

The Transportation Commission will meet at 5:00 pm in room 215 of the Madison Municipal Bldg. On the agenda is final approval of the W Wilson St–Broom Street project that we have written about in the past. On Wilson St, there will be buffered bike lanes from Broom to Hamilton, but buffered lanes will disappear at Hamilton to accommodate turning traffic. On Broom a multi-use path will be built in place of the east side sidewalk from John Nolen Dr to Wilson, and a cycle track will be built from Wilson to Doty.

Thursday

Public input session for the planned University Ave reconstruction in 2021 will be held at the UW Credit Union building at 3500 University Ave. The meeting will start at 6:00 pm, and there will be a presentation by City of Madison Engineering at 6:30 pm. The project will rebuild the road from Shorewood Blvd to University Bay Dr/Farley. This will be a project that could transform a major arterial for decades. Or it could be a business-as-usual rebuild of a dangerous and car-oriented roadway that separates neighborhoods and makes it unpleasant to walk, bike, or take the bus.

As part of this project, sidewalks will be constructed on the north side of University Ave and either an underpass or overpass of University Bay Dr will be built for the Campus Dr Path, we hope. Shorewood Hills will be constructing the last segment of the path – to the west of University Bay Dr – as soon as construction of the buildings currently underway on Marshall Ct are finished. With the improved crossing, this would allow connections to either path or quiet streets all the way to the west end of the Blackhawk Path at Eau Claire Ave.

Crossings of University Ave are difficult and often scary, even when there is a traffic light. A child was killed at the intersection of University Ave and Ridge a couple of years ago. He was trying to cross at a light to reach the Shorewood Hills pool, a favorite summer destination for families and kids on both sides of the road. A ghost bike was present at the intersection until construction started on a new building on the corner.

Although the road itself is wide, busy, and fast, the neighborhoods on both the north and south sides are generally transit-, walking-, and biking-friendly and many people move around without driving. But University Ave presents a serious barrier to this easy movement.

What I call “the hospitals, etc.” --  UW Hospital, the VA Hospital, and the American Family Hospital, plus all the associated clinics and labs, and offices – as well as the beginning of the entire UW campus are also on the north side of the road. These are huge employment centers, and many people who live on the south side or in the Village want to walk or bike there. There are crowds of transit users, pedestrians, and bicyclists that want to cross University Ave every day. Unfortunately, there are also huge crowds of people driving to these locations as well, making for tense and difficult interactions at the intersections.

On both the Madison side and the Village side, redevelopment is happening. That means both more walkable and bikeable destinations – stores, apartments, restaurants, and such – plus more people living in close proximity to this major road. University Ave is one of the heaviest transit corridors outside the campus and downtown, and more than a dozen bus routes use the stops. If bus rapid transit (BRT) is built, this will be an even heavier transit corridor. Each of those transit users needs to cross the road at least once a day. This road needs to be much more multi-modal.

This corridor is the perfect example of why we cannot forget the need to CROSS a road as well as move along it. There is a good bike corridor on the north side and the Kendall Ave bike boulevard to the south (although it is several blocks away and separated from University Ave by Quarry Park on the western end of the project), but people still need to cross the road to reach their homes, work, or other destinations. If you wait for a bus on the south side of University, you will often see bicyclists on the sidewalk. Riding on the sidewalk by adults is almost always a sign that there is an unmet need for bike facilities.

This will be an important meeting to show support for bicycle facilities and other transportation options in the area.

Saturday

The Clean Lakes Alliance will hold a fundraising ride around Lake Monona starting at 10 am at Olbrich Park. Find out more about Loop The Lake.