Bicycle Film Festival this Thursday!
This is the week! The 25th Anniversary (and second time in Madison) edition of the Bicycle Film Festival is happening this Thursday! Tickets are still available as of now, but don’t wait too long. Full details about the festival are available here. We’ll have door prizes and there is a pre-festival social hour at Working Draft, with a special appearance by the Chef At Large food cart. Will we see you on Thursday?
Week Without Driving starts today
Did you know that about 30-40% of residents in Dane County are non-drivers? That is, they can’t or don’t drive at all. Because they’re too young, too old, have a disability that prevents them from driving, can’t afford to drive, don’t have a drivers’ license, or choose not to drive for some reason or the other. Non-drivers face many challenges, such as inadequate transit service, missing sidewalks, unsafe bike conditions, etc. Week Without Driving invites elected officials, transportation professionals, policymakers, and community members to step into the shoes of non-drivers by not driving from Sept 29 to October 5 and reflecting on that experience.
In addition, there are also community discussions about the week. You already missed the one in Madison, which took place yesterday (and was wonderful!). But you can still join the discussions in Sun Prairie on Tuesday and Fitchburg on Thursday. Virtual options are included, and the recordings will be made available later. You can also watch a short intro video with Anna Zivarts, the author and activist who came up with Week Without Driving (and apparently considered moving to Madison after she visited in 2024!)
Bike Advocacy Meetup on Sunday
On Sunday, join the monthly Bike Advocacy meetup at Machinery Row. These meetups aim to connect and empower people from the Madison community to collaborate, learn, and strategize ways to make Madison more bike friendly. It’s a welcoming crowd and you don’t need to a bike or bike advocacy nerd to join. 5-6:30 pm at Machinery Row.
Can’t make it in person? There’s an online community on Discord as well: https://discord.gg/QJBt5e5K (link expires in 7 days)
Lake Wingra Community Ride a success
It was the most beautiful weather imaginable for the inaugural Lake Wingra Community Ride. The ride celebrated the creation of the Lake Wingra Loop, a 6.5 mile route that features natural, historical, and cultural highlights. About 60 community leaders, businesses, elected officials, and people enjoying the route came together and stopped at the various points of interest along the route. There will be likely be another community ride next year, but for now you can experience the route at your pace, whenever you like. Check out the story map here: https://storymaps.arcgis.com/stories/52bda717b8a544169a62f691746c77b8
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. For construction updates, check out the city’s Bike Madison page.
Thanks to our sponsors who make our events possible!
