Author: Robbie Webber

The past week:

It’s a slow week ahead, but it’s been an exciting past week. A number of new piece of infrastructure are either open or in place. Take a look at the video on the MB Facebook group to check out the new bridges in Vilas Park. The new version of the path through Crazy Legs Plaza –⁠ at the intersection of Monroe and Regent –⁠ is now open. Users report it is a good design and easy to negotiate. An improved curb cut at the Capital City Path and Dunning –⁠ by the Harmony Bar –⁠ will make the diagonal crossing better.

The first meeting of both the new transportation committees happened when they met in joint session this past Tuesday. The Transportation Commission –⁠ which is the one that is supposed to deal with the implementation and day-to-day decisions for our transportation system –⁠ will meet again this coming week and then again on August 22. It is unclear if the two city committees will continue to meet jointly for awhile, or if they have set future meetings for the Transportation and Planning Board –⁠ the more long range-looking body. There are no meetings for that body on the city calendar at this time. Also, two if the committees that are no longer meeting –⁠ the Pedestrian/Bicycle/Motor Vehicle Commission and the Transit and Parking Commission –⁠ had their meetings televised on cable and streamed on the city website. No word if the city will stream the new transportation bodies’ meetings as well.

The week ahead:

Tuesday the Madison Bikes Communications Committee will meet at 5:30 pm at Memorial Union. We normally meet just outside the beer window by the Stiftskeller. If the weather is bad, we’ll be in the Stiftskeller. Come on by to say hello or to help out with outreach and communications.

Wednesday the new Transportation Commission will meet for the second time. Mostly, they will be going over basic business such as electing a chair and vice-chair. But they will also have a staff presentation about the structure of the various components of the city transportation divisions. So if you want to know who does what, you can attend at 5:00 pm in Room 201 of the City-County Building.

Saturday the August MadTown Unity Ride will take place starting at 10 am and leaving from the Villager Mall. This is a slow family ride through the south side of Madison. The distance will be between 7 and 10 miles. If you don ‘t have a bike or helmet, you can borrow one during the ride.

The target audience for these rides is Black, Brown, Indigenous people of color, LGBT+ community, the Senior community and other communities that have been affected by discrimination who live or work in a predominantly low-to moderate-income community in the Madison Southside. We use these rides as a vehicle to increase social cohesion at the neighborhood level, as well as highlight the assets and inequities which exist in neighborhoods across the Madison Southside.

Last week

On Saturday, a great group was Riding 24 Hours in Support of Immigrants and Refugees, some for a short time, some for longer. You can see the photos, on Baltazar’s Facebook page.

Cap City Trail closing, but new links might be in the works

About half of the Cap City Trail will be closed for six weeks starting Monday, so I hope everyone got one last ride in over the beautiful (and finally cooler) weekend. The county is repaving the trail from Nob Hill Road to Glacial Valley Road. In case you don’t know those cross streets, that’s more or less from just south of where the path crosses under the Beltine to just short of Fish Hatchery Road. It will be six weeks before it’s open again, but we’ll have a smoother riding experience.

One the other hand, the county also announced that they are soliciting projects from communities to connect local bike trails to the existing county system trails. This is a great program, because smaller communities otherwise may struggle to find funding for important connections. The county program will pay up to 50 percent of the cost of design, engineering, and construction.

The week ahead

Other than the inconvenience of a major bike route being unavailable, things are going to be pretty quiet this week.

Monday

The Madison Bikes Events Committee will meet at 6:00 pm at Barriques on S Park St. We would really love to have some additional volunteers help us plan our events. Right now, we are working on the annual party for September, but there are lots of events we could do with more help. So, if you are great at throwing parties, or just are a good organizer of community events, come by and check out the committee.

Tuesday

The Madison Bikes Communications Committee will meet at 5:30 pm at the Memorial Union Terrace. If you would be interested in helping us with blog posts, social media, or other outreach activities please feel free to stop by. We are usually near the outdoor beer window, but up on the level of the theater wing, but if you cant’s find us, shoot an email to Heather, the committee chair.

Also on Tuesday, the Council will be considering the Winnebago project yet again. This time the recommendation is for Option 1B. Harald sent out an action alert on Sunday, so check there for more information.

The council will also be confirming the new citizen members of the new Transportation Commission and the Transportation Policy and Planning Board. These two committees will replace the PBMVC, Transit and Parking Commission, and the Long Range Transportation Planning Committee. (There are two files, so there are two links above.)

A little Easter egg seems to be on the Council agenda, something that has been needed for a long time. It looks like an underpass of the railroad that runs parallel to Old Middleton Road is planned to connect Craig Ave to Old Middleton Rd. This would provide a pedestrian-bike route from University Ave to Old Middleton west of Whitney Way. Map/satellite image here (it takes a loooong time to load.)

Saturday

You can join the July Unity Ride at 10 am. MadTown Unity Rides are organized by local groups to celebrate the unity and diversity of Madison Southside and to connect our communities together.The target audience for these rides is Black, Brown, Indigenous people of color, LGBT+ community and other communities that have been affected by discrimination who live or work in a predominantly low-tmoderate-income community in the Madison Southside. We use these rides as a vehicle to increase social cohesion at the neighborhood level, as well as highlight the assets and inequities which exist in neighborhoods across the Madison Southside. This is a family ride, so they will be going at a very relaxed, slow pace. The distance will be between 7-10 miles. And if you don’t have a bike or helmet, The group can arrange to lend you one. For more information and a map of the ride, check out the Facebook event.

Send us your events

Remember, if you have an event that you’d like us to include on the Community Calendar, send it to us.

We had wonderful weather for Bike Week and all the activities: not too hot, not too cold, and almost no rain! Thanks to all who came by, chatted at the commuter stations, threw a little into the donation box, and signed up to be on the mailing list. We had a great time and met some new people, many of whom didn’t know about Madison Bikes.

This brings me to a reminder to all current Facebook friends and email subscribers: If you know someone who would like to know what’s happening with bicycling in Madison, please send them over to us. They can follow us on Facebook, participate in our group discussions, and/or sign up to get our blogs and weekly updates emailed to them directly.

We are a stronger, more effective organization when more people join and participate. One of our goals is to keep bicyclists up to date with what’s happening on city committees, in your neighborhood, and when plans or votes are coming up that will affect bicycling. Your voice is very important, and you can help us by getting your friends to join as well.

On to the weekly update for this week. After all the activities last week, the coming week is pretty slow for meetings and activities.

Monday

Madison Bikes Events Committee will meet at 6:00 pm at Barriques, 127 W Washington. All the Madison Bikes committees are looking for additional volunteers and committee members, so if you are interested in helping plan events, we could really use your help. The Winter Fashion Show, Annual Party/Member Meeting, and Bike Week commuter stations are just some of the events that this committee has planned. Don’t know whether it’s for you? Stop by to say hello and ask a few questions. They’ll be glad to see you!

There will be a special meeting of the Plan Commission, at 5:00 pm in Room 103A of the City/County Building, to approve updates to the Comprehensive Plan. This will guide how the city grows, and where, for the next ten years. It’s been through a lot of work and discussed by almost every committee of the city –⁠ including several transportation committees — and now needs to be passed by the Plan Commission and Council. If you would like to see everyone who’d looked at it and what input they had, you can follow this link and click on the documents.

Tuesday

The Middleton Pedestrian. Bike, Transit Committee will be at 5:30 in the Council Chambers in Middleton City Hall, 7426 Hubbard Avenue. It looks like the city is taking the first steps to build a much-needed path along Century Ave. This has been a missing link in the metro area for quite some time, with none of the existing options –⁠ ride in the main lanes with fast-moving traffic or use the sidewalk — particularly safe or inviting. But it’s just the start of the process, because this is what is listed on the agenda:

The City of Middleton received three responses to its Request for Proposals for consultant engineering services to design a 10 ft. wide path along the north side of Century Avenue, between Old Creek Road and the eastern city limits (near Mendota County Park).

Saturday

There are two rides scheduled for Saturday.

The Clean Lakes Alliance will have its annual Loop the Lake ride and fundraiser, starting at Olbrich Park at 10:00 am. The ride is the familiar ride around Lake Monona (about 13 miles), but you’ll be doing it with a few hundred other people. Although most people will finish in about 75-90 minutes, the course will stay open until 2:00 pm. More information at the link about or at the Facebook event.

Tour de Familia Latina/Latino Family Tour will start at 1:00 pm at Quan Park, hosted by BiciClub Latino de Madison. They are meeting at bit outside downtown Madison to avoid all the other events going on downtown. Quan Park is right next to the Wingra Creek Path and behind the Alliant Center. From there, they will be biking to the Lower Yahara River Path, a beautiful ride. All are welcome, and the ride is geared toward families and riders of all ages and abilities.

All these events are also listed on the Madison Bike Community Calendar. If you would like to have an event listed, send it over to us.

Last week

After the Council approved option # 2 for Winnebago St, on Tuesday, May1 — a big win for safety because the option provided more buffer between the bike lanes and motor vehicle traffic –⁠ the Mayor then decided to veto the Council’s action. You can read his veto letter here.

We anticipate that the Council will try to overturn the veto this coming week. See Tuesday’s upcoming events for more information.

On Saturday, Robbie and Harald presented work at the Wisconsin Bike Summit in Madison. Other board members, volunteers, and friends of Madison Bikes also attended.

This Week

On Monday, the Madison Bikes Board will meet at 6 pm at the Central Library. Everyone is welcome to attend.

This Tuesday, we anticipate the Madison Common Council will try to overturn the Mayor’s veto of the vote to build option # 2 on Winnebago. The original vote was 11-6, with one alder absent, one abstaining, and one who was chairing the meeting. 14 votes are needed to overturn the veto, and one person who voted in the minority has already said he will vote to overturn.

Everyone can hep by contacting your alder to ask that they uphold the action passed by the majority. There was a robust public outreach process and many committee meetings that came before the Council vote, so it is disappointing that the Mayor wants to undo all that work.

The meeting starts at 6:30 pm in Room 201 of the City-County Building. You can register to speak, watch in person, or watch the meeting on Madison City Channel. It’s a great lesson in local democracy, and you might become a better advocate or more informed citizen.

On Wednesday, the Madison Bikes Advocacy Committee will meet at 6:00 pm at Bendy Works, 106 E Doty St, 2^nd floor. If you’d like to help us out with our work on advocacy issues, feel free to stop by.

Friday, Sun Prairie’s advocacy group will be holding a bike commuter station at Canery Row from 6:00-8:30 am. So if you happen to be out that way, stop by to say hello.

We can expect to see quite a few weekend events, as the warm weather is finally here.

Saturday, there are two events. First, from 9:00-noon, Christ Presbyterian Church, 944 East Gorham St is holding a bike rodeo. There is a long list of activities for all ages and abilities. Get a tune up, try out an electric bike, get some safety training for kids, enter the raffle, and learn how to fix a flat.

Then from 1:00-4:00 join others visiting galleries and art exhibitions by bike for Bike the Arts. The fun starts at the Bubbler at the Central Library and then moves on to other locations. A full list of locations and times can be found here.

Sunday, there is a ride for women to check out mountain biking, or just join others. All levels of expertise welcome, whether this is your first time or know the trails very well. Head over to the Bell Joy Ride on the John Muir Trails the Southern Kettle Morraine, N9097 County Road H, Elkhorn.

You can always get the info on these events by checking out the Madison Bikes Community Calendar. Have an event that you’d like to put on our calendar? Send it out way.

In case you missed it

Here’s what we were talking about on our Facebook group:

Baltazar is asking people to vote on the name for the community latino bike group that is formalizing their organization.

There was a spirited discussion about the Mayor’s veto of the Council vote on Winnebago.

Grant posted the results of a survey on what people want in Monona to improve walking and biking.

Does banning hand-held cell phone use actually improve safety?

It’s bitter cold, then it’s amazingly warm; it’s snowing, then it’s raining. There’s ice, and then the streets are bone dry. That’s winter in southern Wisconsin. But there are lots of activities and city meetings to think about and attend. So here we go with our weekly update of the goings-on.

The week ahead

On Monday, both Madison Bikes and Bike Fitchburg will be holding meetings. The Madison Bikes Board of Directors meets at the Madison Central Library at 6:00 pm. Fitchburg Bikes meets at the Fiitchburg Library at 6:30 pm.

Also on Monday, the weekly MEAThead ride leaves at 7:00 pm from Ford’s Gym, 2114 Winnebago St, for a Lake Monona Loop ride, with an optional loop through the Arboretum. This is a weekly ride from November through March, so just put it on your calendar.

Tuesday, the monthly Pedestrian/Bicycle/Motor Vehicle Commission meeting (5:00 pm in Rm 201 of the City-County Bldg, agenda here) will take up a number of seemingly routine, but actually quite important matters. Remember that you can go to all city meetings to watch, and you can also register to testify on any item on the agenda. You can summit comments or your support/opposition via email or in writing in person. Your voice is important! To get more information on the items below, just click the agenda link and follow the attachments for each item.

The PBMVC will discuss the following items:

• Projects within the neighborhood Traffic Management Program (AKA traffic calming).
• Where new traffic signal will be installed.
• A number of general city engineering projects that affect bicycling, including the project at Winnebago and Riverside, a few short path connections, and the repaving of the path that leads to Memorial High School.
• Bicycle-specific projects coming up in this year, mosst of which are small items like flashing lights or curb ramps.
• The city’s policy of bike route maitenance policy.

Also on the agenda is a state law being considered that would add electric bikes to the definiton of “bicycle” in state statutes. You can see a staff review of the proposed state law by Traffic Engineering.

If you’re not I the mood for a city meeting on Tuesday, you can head over to Manna Café on N. Sherman to join up with Down With Bikes for their biweekly winter social ride and games night. Leaving from Manna at 6:30 pm, they will weave through the North Side to arrive at Player’s Bar for ping pong, pool, and board games.

Wednesday

Although the Middleton Pedestrian, Bike, Transit Committee is listed on the Madison Bikes calendar as meeting on Wednesday at 6:30 pm at the Middleton City Hall, no evidence of it can be found on the City of Middleton meetings website. If you are interested in upcoming issues, it might be worth a call to the city to see if a meeting is scheduled.

Finally, on Thursday, the Long Range Transportation Planning Committee will be meeting (5:00 pm in Room 108 of the City-County Bldg, agenda here.) The principal item on the agenda will be continued work on the transportation component of the Imagine Madison planning process, which is the update to the city Comprehensive Plan.

And some reminders:

If you have an event, meeting, or ride that you would like us to list on the Madison Bikes calendar, please drop us a note.

And don’t forget to mark your calendars for Feb 3, when we will be at the Frozen Assets Festival and Fundraiser for the Clean Lakes Alliance. It’s happening on the lake behind (or would that be in front of?) the Edgewater. Drop by and see us and enjoy all the activities, including a fat bike race on the ice on Friday, and on Saturday our popular fat bike sled pull. (Sorry, kids only.)

Although we still have over a week to go, the big news is that we are busy preparing for the Winter Bike Fashion Show on December 9 at the High Noon. Make sure to invite all your friends who are curious about how and why to bike in cold weather. You can even invite those friends who think we are all nuts; they may just have fun or gain a new respect for the cold-weather pedalers. We have a great roster of models lined up!

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Besides the fashion show, there are a couple of city meetings and a whole lot of fun cool/cold weather events to keep your blood and legs moving. Or, you can just be a spectator at the Cyclocross Championships on Saturday.

Monday

Bike Fitchburg monthly meeting, 6:30-8:30 pm at the Fitchburg Public Library. If you live or work in Fitchburg or just care about what happens there, here’s a great group to influence policy in our neighboring city.

MEAThead ride, starting at Fords Gym at 7:00 pm at 2114 Winnebago. This is a no-drop ride of Lake Monona with an optional loop through the Arboretum. If this sounds like fun, but you can’t make this one, it is held every Monday from November until March 6.

Tuesday

The Pedestrian/Bicycle/Motor Vehicle Commission will meet at 5:00 pm in room 201 of the City-County Building. On the agenda is a resolution to proceed with development of a bus rapid transit (BRT) corridor running east and west. The eastern and western termini area still to be determined. More information is available in the documents for the meeting. While this is not strictly a bicycle issue, BRT can be a complement to improved bicycling in the city as part of a strong multimodal transportation system. But we will have to be careful that the BRT is not built at the expense of bicycle facilities that allow access to important destinations in the same corridor. Also on the agenda is a discussion of the continuing Imagine Madison planning process. You can watch the meeting streaming here.

Also on Tuesday is another edition of the Tuesday Night Ride, a social no-drop ride averaging 10 mph. Leaving from Colectivo on the Square at 6pm sharp. Don’t forget your lights! This week they will stop by Alt Brew, hoping there will be a new Bicycle Benefits Madison, WI deal.

Thursday

The same two issues mentioned on the PBMVC agenda –⁠ the Imagine Madison update and the resolution in favor of the BRT Phase 1 will also be on the agenda of the Long Range Transportation Planning Committee on Thursday, meeting at 5:00 pm in room 108 of the City-County Building.

Saturday

The Cyclocross State Championships at the Trek Headquarters, 801 W Madison St, Waterloo. It’s back for 2017! Once again, Revolution Cycles Club is promoting the WI State Cyclocross Championships. Expect thrills, spills, and chills on a technical course at Trek HQ!

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Photo from the 2016 Global Fat Bike Day at CamRock

And if cyclocross isn’t your thing, then how celebrating Global Fat Bike Day at the CamRock Cafe and Sport, 217 W Main St, Cambridge. It will be the same day as the Cambridge Country Christmas, so there are events for the whole family. Details here. Group Ride at 2:00 pm. Lots of beverages (brews and non-alcoholic options) stashed at stop points around the trails. Fun back at CamRock Sport at 5:00 pm with Bonfires, Food, and more. All donations and all money raised for food, beverages, etc. going to the Bike Park. Music starts at 7:00 pm and goes all night. And somewhere in there the Badgers will be playing for the Big Ten title!

Sunday

Finally, to round out the week, come to the Cargo Bike/Café Domestique Shop Social, 1404 Williamson St. There will be warm beverages, a short ride, and the chance to learn more about the hosts. 3:00 pm: Meet for a hot beverage 3:30 pm: Roll out for a Lake Monona Loop. 4:30-6 pm: Demos/activities at Cargo and Café Domestique.

Remember, we have all these events listed on the Madison Bikes calendar. If you would like to have an event listed, send us an email.

Photo courtesy of Joel Patenaude

Last week, the bike network got one more connection in the form of a bridge over McKee road near S. High Point Rd. The bridge is part of a path that will run from Valley View Rd south to Verona and meet up with the Military Ridge Trail. Parts of the trail are already built, and this new bridge is a big addition. You can see the plans for the entire planned length as well as updates on construction on the city’s website.

Also last week, a bumpy and cracked section of the Wingra Creek Path that runs from Olin Park under John Nolen Drive and a bit west was repaved. It’s always nice to have smooth, fresh pavement, and we appreciate the city keeping our paths maintained.

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Nice, smooth pavement on the Wingra Creek Path

Grant has created a new Facebook group to keep everyone updated on the Atwood St Reconstruction. You can find it here.

There aren’t too many city meetings this week. I guess that’s what happens during the 5th week of the month. Remember you only have two more days until the end of the month, and that means the end of your chance to fill your Madison Bike! Bingo card! Thanks to all the businesses that participated and all the people that biked. I discovered some new places and had a lot of fun.

City meetings this week

Tuesday, the City Council will be accepting the final plans for Crazy Legs Plaza and Wingra Park. Both of these locations are important to bicyclists, because the SW Path passes through Crazy Legs Plaza, and Wingra Park is an important bike connection on the south side of Monroe St. This is part of the Monroe St reconstruction, so you’ve probably heard about the meetings and open houses to discuss these plans. But if you are sure what they are doing, you can find the plans on line or attend the Council meeting at 6:30 p in the City-County Bldg.

Wednesday, the Madison Area Transportation Planning Board will have a presentation on bicycle and pedestrian crashes in Dane County. The meeting is at 6:30 PM at the Madison Water Utility Building, 119 E. Olin Avenue. We’ll try to get an update on this project and see what they found. If anyone attends, maybe you can give us a report.

If you have an event that you’d like added, send the details to info@madisonbikes.org.