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.
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