Author: Ben Sandee

School’s out, the days are long, and the trails are full — summer in Madison has officially arrived. With the kids off for the season, it feels like a good moment to think about how we get around town, who we build our streets for, and where the next round of improvements is headed. There’s a lot of that in this week’s edition, so clip in.

One quick thing before we dig in: If you got out and rode during Bike Week or if you helped run an event, the organizers would love to hear how it went! Please take a few minutes to fill out the feedback survey — it really does help us shape next year.

Transportation Commission, and a stacked Wednesday agenda

The big one this week is the Transportation Commission, meeting Wednesday at 5 PM, and the agenda is loaded with stuff we care about. A few highlights worth your attention (and, if you’ve got the energy, a public comment):

There’s the Moorland Rd Path, the West Towne Path behind the mall, and the second phase of the John Nolen Drive project. There’s also a long list of Safe Streets Madison projects — the two bikiest being protected intersection improvements at Segoe/Mineral Point and buffered bike lanes on S Mills St (from Milton St to Erin St).

The West Towne Path piece (this is Phase 2b) fills in the gap along the Beltline behind the mall, picking up where the existing West Towne Path starts at S Whitney Way. An important connector through a stretch that’s long needed it.

On John Nolen, the Phase 2 design includes a reworked Lakeside Street intersection: smaller corner radii, narrower lanes, a shorter crossing of John Nolen Drive, and more room for people walking and biking.

This Week

On Monday at 6 PM, join the MPO Regional Transportation Plan Public Involvement Meeting over Zoom. The Greater Madison MPO is updating the region’s long-range transportation plan — the document that guides transportation investments and priorities for the next 20–30 years — so this is a real chance to weigh in. Can’t make Monday? There’s a second session on Wednesday at noon. There’s also an online survey and an interactive comment map; find them on the city’s Regional Transportation Plan page. The Cap Times has a good rundown of what’s at stake.

On Wednesday at 5 PM, attend the Transportation Commission meeting (agenda and registration info at the link) — see above for the bike-relevant items on the agenda.

Also on Wednesday at 5:30 PM, roll out with the Capital Brewery E-Bike Club Group Ride, starting and ending at Capital Brewery in Middleton. It runs every Wednesday through the summer — billed as a “high-energy, inclusive, and flat-out fun” ride out on the trails.

On Friday at 11 AM, check out the Lunch Bunch E-Bike Group Rides, a casual roll to a different restaurant or cafe each week. They always meet at Machinery Row Bicycles.

Finally, on Sunday at 8 AM, join the Century Training Club, also at Machinery Row. Signed up for a long-distance ride this year? This is a friendly, supportive group built to help you stack up the miles and build your endurance.

Other Stuff

The Wisconsin Bike Fed is hiring — shout out to the folks over there; if that’s your lane, take a look. Could be you!

A couple of items from Craig on Slack:

With schools out, it’s a good time to reflect on schools and biking. The Wisconsin State Journal spotlighted Lake View phy-ed teacher James Kersten, who built a bike fleet and a trail system aimed squarely at income disparities — Kersten estimated about 60% of his students had never ridden a bike before. Meanwhile, Madison’s Safe Routes to School draft strategic plan is moving forward, with close involvement from the Bike Fed’s Shawn Koval and the city’s Kevin Luecke. And the 2024 school facilities referendum will completely rebuild Cherokee, Sennett, Black Hawk, and Toki middle schools (Toki’s initial design was presented last month) and renovate many more.

It’ll take parents, neighbors, and advocates to make sure these projects lead to more biking and walking to school, not less. A few things to watch for: compliance with the Safe Routes to School plan, especially around drop-off/pick-up traffic flow; updating bike parking to meet current city code (past school projects had their substandard bike parking quantities “grandfathered” in); coordinating with adjacent city projects; and pushing MMSD to make bike education mandatory at all elementary schools.

Earlier this year, Bloomberg dug into the rise in pedestrian fatalities through the work of Nick Ferenchak, an engineering professor at the University of New Mexico. Beyond the usual suspects — SUV and truck bloat, distracted driving — Ferenchak points to the “suburbanization of poverty” as a major factor. As he frames it:

So now you have lower-income populations living there who might not have motor vehicles. They need to walk, and they’re doing it in a suburban setting that is not designed to accommodate them.

It’s a sobering read, and a reminder that street design is a safety-and-equity issue, not just a convenience one.

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!

March is here, and while we’re oscillating wildly between May and February weather, there are some exciting signs of the season turning. BCycle comes back into service on Friday, Bikeorama is this weekend, and there’s a whole pile of news to dig into. Let’s get to it.

BCycle Returns Friday

The big news for casual and commuter riders alike: BCycle officially returns to service this Friday for the 2026 season. If you’ve been eyeing those empty docking stations all winter, your patience has been rewarded. And here’s a nice bonus: BCycle is offering a free month with code FREEMONTH, valid through the end of April. Good excuse to sign up or get a friend started.

Spring Election Questionnaire Responses Are Up

We sent out our 2026 Spring Election questionnaire to candidates, and we got a really good yield of responses this year. If you want to know where candidates stand on bike and transportation issues before you vote, head over and take a look. I’d encourage you to share it with friends and neighbors who might know much about their local races. If you don’t know who your alder is, there’s a link to the City’s site that will look them up for you.

The spring election is on Tuesday, April 7 and also has an always-important State Supreme Court race.

Odana Hills Path Connection

Big news on the west side path network front! The City announced last week that a substantial private gift will fund a redesign of Odana Hills golf course (similar to Glenway a few years back), with construction potentially starting as early as 2027. The Wisconsin State Journal (paywalled) has additional reporting on the details. While a lot is still up in the air about the golf course itself, the City’s announcement specifically mentions expanding the West Beltline Path between South Gammon Road and South Whitney Way along the south side of the course to link up with the Southwest Commuter Path, plus improving stormwater systems in and around the park.

We’d previously thought this path connection would need to wait until changes are made to Whitney Way and the Beltline, so it’s worth noting it could potentially happen sooner. Madison Bikes’ Craig has been digging into the details and notes that the pressing question becomes where and how to cross Whitney Way. The obvious answer is through the Milward Drive easement to the West Beltline Path, which has room for a future overpass. But Medical Circle also looks like a possibility that might connect better to the HyVee area. There are also questions about how future Beltline plans interact with all of this. We’ll keep you posted as things develop.

Vote Madison for Strongest Town

Our friends at Strong Towns have asked us to spread the word: Madison is competing in the 2026 Strongest Town Contest, and voting is open throughout the month of March. If you think Madison deserves recognition for investing in great streets, bike infrastructure, and sustainable transportation, go cast your vote. You can vote throughout the whole month, so set a reminder and keep at it.

This Week

On Monday at 6 PM, the Madison Bikes board meets in person at Madison Central Library. Board meetings are open to everyone, so if you’re curious about what we’re working on, feel free to stop by.

On Tuesday at 4:30 PM, the Alliant Energy Center is hosting a Master Plan Town Hall to discuss their future plans. This includes a facilities expansion, a new 13-acre “365 Destination” mixed-use district with restaurants, hospitality, and entertainment, a larger “Destination District,” and a Traffic Master Plan to tie it all together. Their newsletter notes that several key infrastructure projects just outside the campus, including the John Nolen Drive reconstruction, the Madison LakeWay Vision, and a Rimrock Road rebuild, are designed to improve access for pedestrians, cyclists, transit users, and drivers. If you’re interested, there’s an RSVP flyer here.

On Wednesday at 6 PM, the Madison Queer Bike Ride rolls out from Law Park. This is the monthly second-Wednesday group ride, party pace, all welcome. A great way to shake off the early-March cobwebs.

Also on Wednesday at 6 PM, the City is hosting a virtual public input meeting on the Moorland Road path project, running until 7:30 PM. Got thoughts about this one? Here’s your chance to share them. (Zoom Registration).

On Friday, to reiterate, BCycle returns to service for the 2026 season. Time to dust off that membership (or sign up for a new one) and start rolling. Remember, code FREEMONTH gets you a free month, and it’s good through the end of April.

We’ll be bringing stations back online throughout the day, so check the BCycle App before heading out to see real-time station and bike availability.

And finally, this weekend is Bikeorama. Running Friday through Sunday (March 13-15) at the New Holland Pavilions at the Alliant Energy Center. If you haven’t been, it’s basically a big bike expo with vendors, demos, and all things cycling. A great way to start thinking seriously about the riding season ahead. Admission and bike parking are free, but car parking ain’t!

Coming Up

On Saturday, April 11, the Middleton PD in concert with Wisconsin Bike Federation is offering a free Bike Safety teaching certification course at Elm Lawn Elementary School in Middleton from 11:30 AM to 5 PM. This is in preparation for the June 6th Middleton Bike Rodeo, and they can train up to 16 people. If you’re interested in getting certified to teach bike safety, email James Blodgett directly at jameswblodgett@gmail.com.

Also worthy of note: the Bike Fed’s education team is hiring four Dane County high school students for its paid, part-time Transportation Ambassadors internship program. It’s a 12-month gig starting in June, open to students across Dane County who will be in high school during the 2026-27 school year. If you know a young person who likes bikes and is interested in transportation, urban planning, environmental science, or political science, point them toward this. Applications are open through Sunday, April 12, and details are available in English and Spanish. Questions and applications can go to Shawn Koval at shawn.koval@wisconsinbikefed.org.

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!

Another weekend full of snow, another snowy start to the week. With the holiday, the city and sidewalk stake-holders have had some extra time to clean up, so hopefully everyone can get where they need to go without too much struggle if they have to head back on Tuesday!

Last Week

The city’s Vision Zero newsletter dropped with updates on its road safety efforts. In a message from the mayor, she outlined how the Safe Systems approach is being used to eliminate serious crashes through street design improvements like protected bike lanes, high-visibility crosswalks, and traffic calming measures. The city is also developing new active transportation plans, including an updated Pedestrian Plan and an All Ages and Abilities Bikeways Network map. Another highlight includes progress on the Perry Street Connection Study, which should provide some much needed cross-beltline access just west of S. Park St/Hwy 14 intersection.

People for Bikes put together a list of the best bike lane projects in 2025, and Madison’s updated Wilson St. corridor made the list! If you haven’t had the chance, it’s definitely worth experiencing as an alternative to John Nolen Dr for cross-isthmus traffic or access to the Capital area!

This Week

On Wednesday at 5pm, the Transportation Commission will meet virtually. It’s a relatively light agenda with the biggest item being the proposal titled: “Opposing the Expansion of the Beltline Within the City of Madison and Supporting Improved Multimodal and Local Connectivity Across and Along the Corridor”. Should be interesting, but as we’ve noted before, most comments are best-directed directly to the state, who run the project. According to the slide deck, those comments were due on 15 Jan, so maybe it’s just time to watch and wait to find out what happens next. Whatever that is, you’ll find out about it here!

On Thursday at 6pm at the Central Library downtown, Madison Bikes is hosting a casual meet-and-greet with Christof Spieler, who has been Madison’s Director of Transportation for a few months now. Christof will give a short presentation and then open it up for Q&A and discussion. Got thoughts about bike infrastructure, transit, or how we get around this city? Here’s a chance to share them. After the official part wraps up around 7:15, folks will be heading to the Great Dane Pub off the square to keep the conversation going, chatting about about transportation or whatever else.

There are quite a few paid clinics run by CORP coming up over the next few months, with two sessions of “Biker Barre” this week. You can check out their site for a list of all the clinics on deck along with links to register.

Coming Up

On Friday, February 13th, we’re gearing up to celebrate International Winter Bike to Work Day by hosting two events to help cyclists embrace cold-weather riding. Morning riders can stop by the Madison Bikes tent near Machinery Row along the Capital City Path between 7-9am for coffee from Cafe Domestique, donuts, and a chance to connect with fellow winter cycling enthusiasts. Later in the day, the celebration continues with a happy hour at Working Draft Beer Company from 4-6pm, where cyclists can enjoy drinks and socializing (plus a 10% discount for those with Bicycle Benefits stickers!)

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!

Most of this post lives in the past with a recap, but there’s a bit of a look into the future. It seems to be a quiet week on the calendar.

Bike-A-Thon

Whitehorse Middle School held their Bike-A-Thon, which was the culmination of a few weeks of safe biking instruction and practice. Here’s a nice piece of media on it.

Southwest Path Lighting

The City performed emergency repairs to the lighting system on the Southwest Path, which had been a bit unreliable over the last few years. The details seem to be poorly reported, with some low-information posts only to social platforms and nothing official that I could find on the City web site, but some more detailed internal communication was made available:

Previously, we had a wireless system to communicate with and manage all the lights along the path so that we can control when the lights are on and off and we can adjust the lighting intensity. However, that system stopped working and the manufacturer is no longer supporting it. To bring the lights back as quickly as possible for safety reasons, especially with the upcoming football games, our crew is responding to the situation immediately and replacing the system with simpler photocells on individual lights so that the lights will be on from dusk to dawn, like what we do for the vast majority of the streetlights in the City. Hope this will not have a significant impact on any nearby residences. We do understand the desire from some neighbors for the City being able to dynamically control over the lights. So, for a longer-term, we will look for a smarter solution to manage the lights in a more sophisticated and more dynamic way.

So there’s a change in how the lights will function for the time being, with the lights on all night, whereas previously they would turn off at 11pm. I think this is a great news and plan to email my alder to let them know. This is particularly important as the days are getting shorter so quickly, something that seems to be taking a lot of path users by surprise.

Budget

The Mayor released their initial 2026 City Operating Budget which details “money for running City departments and services… [and] pays for the day-to-day spending on employees and materials and supplies.” So not as sexy as the Capital Budget but important nonetheless. This will go through several stages of review, subject to Common Council review and revision but it’s a starting point. Expect to see some ongoing discussion over the next months as the council has public hearings.

A few highlights for cycling are that within Traffic Engineering there is largely no change in budget from prior years, and that includes Bicycle & Pedestrian services. Within Streets Division, there is continued full funding for snow removal on bicycle paths.

West Towne Path

This may be old news, but it was new to me! Phase 2a of ye-olde Weste Towne Pathe (better known as that stretch between High Point Rd and Zor Shrine Place) is finally completed and open for use. For cyclists, this removes an increasingly-busy crossing at High Point Rd and a congested stretch along D’onofrio Dr. If you’ve been eyeing the dead-end bicycle path loop ramp along High Point @ Beltline for the past decade (since 2017), wondering when it would finally go somewhere, well these are the moments you live for!

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!

I’m glad we’re almost done with March.

This Week

On Tuesday, April 1, vote if you’re eligible. See last week’s post by Robbie for some great info and a lot more enthusiasm than I can muster. Enjoy it while you can!

Starting Tuesday, April 1, participate in the monthlong Spring Roll Challenge for Dane County.

To take part in the Spring Roll Challenge, residents can create a RoundTrip account at www.RoundTripGreaterMadison.org and log trips taken by biking, walking/rolling, riding the bus, and carpooling from April 1-30. Each green trip logged boosts your chances of winning weekly and grand prizes.

Don’t sleep on it too long because “the first 50 participants to log a green trip in April will receive a free slice from Ian’s Pizza and two complimentary Metro Transit rides.” Good deal.

On Wednesday, April 2 at 6:30 PM, Greater Madison MPO meets virtually. You can check out the agenda and detailed meeting packet if you like. There’s some interesting stuff in there if you care to dig.

On Sunday, April 6 from 12-4:00 PM, the semi-monthly “Open Shop @ Neighborhood House” hosted by Freewheel is happening. Their web site has all the details, but the gist is: “Bring your bike or work on donated bikes at Freewheel’s Open Shop. Experienced instructors are here to help. All skill levels welcome from beginner to pro. Everyone’s a learner, everyone’s a teacher.” Sweet, and convenient to many on the very near SW Side @ 29 S Mills St.

Later on Sunday, April 6 from 5-6:30 PM, join the first of a new, monthly series of Bike Advocacy Meetups hosted by Machinery Row Bicycles:

Machinery Row Bicycles and Madison Bikes are partnering to host a new Bike Advocacy Meetup group in Madison! For those who attended the Bicycle Book Club, our aim is to carry on that momentum with a monthly gathering. Open and free to all, we will meet the first Sunday of every month from 5-6:30pm at Machinery Row. Our first meetup is April 6! The first few meetings will focus on building community, as well as learning about and conducting a bike audit within the City of Madison.

We believe we can successfully advocate for change when there’s a dedicated community invested in the work and sustained by collective energy.

Come as you are and we hope to see you April 6! Help us spread the word by sharing this announcement with anyone who might be interested.  Follow us on social media for updates or contact lauren@machineryrowbicycles.com to be added to the email list.

Upcoming

Keep the evening of Wednesday, April 23 free for a MB community event, also hosted by Machinery Row, titled “Driving Federal Bike Safety Legislation.”

Also, keep your eyes peeled for both old and new spring events that haven’t yet made it onto our calendar.

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!