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Newsletter Weekly Update

Yes, Virginia, there are road diets.

This week, consider giving the gift of your input on city transportation projects and planning. But first, the rampaging:

Wisconsin Bike Fed’s Santa Cycle Rampage rolled through the Isthmus on Saturday, bringing cheer to all the good children and cargo-bike-adapted dogs. The event put a bow on many a newscast, because the only thing more fun than riding in an itchy, fur-trimmed hat is watching scores of Santas pedal by.

Mineral Point widened sidewalk: It’s happening!

The Common Council last week made a final decision on the fate of the widened sidewalk along the north side of Mineral Point Road (for details, see last week’s action alert). After much public comment and debate, the Council did the right thing: Alder Figueroa Cole made a motion to adopt the Transportation Commission’s proposal (i.e. 8-10 ft of sidewalk along the whole stretch, except along Nautilus Point Park, where a separate path will be built). This resolution passed 13-4-1 (yes/no/abstain). Thanks to everyone who emailed the council or spoke at the meeting. Consider sending your alder a note of appreciation if they voted in favor.

YES

D1 Duncan
D2 Bennett
D3 Field
D4 Verveeer
D5 Vidaver
D6 Rummel
D8 Govindarajan
D10 Figueroa Cole
D14 Knox Jr
D15 Martinez-Rutherford
D16 Currie
D18 Myadze
D20 Harrington-McKinney

NO

D7 Wehelie
D9 Conklin
D11 Tishler
D19 Slack

ABSTAIN

D12 Latimer Burris

EXCUSED

D13 Evers
D17 Madison

West Area Plan

The 10-year guide to land use, transportation, parks and open space for the chunk of the Madison bounded by Midvale Boulevard and the Beltline comes before three city commissions this week. The plan includes the Sauk Creek Corridor’s contentious bike path, a road diet with lane reductions for portions of Gammon and Old Sauk roads — with space to be repurposed for a side path and added buffering for bike lanes — and new connections between dead-end streets and establishing rights of way for potential future public roads. Nick Davies posted a brief summary on the Madison Bikes Facebook group.

The three commissions (with links to agendas and virtual meetings) on the calendar are:

Plan Commission, 5:30 p.m. today, Dec. 11

Transportation Commission, 5 p.m., Wednesday, Dec. 13

Board of Park Commissioners, 6:30 p.m., also Wednesday, Dec. 13

The Transportation Commission will also consider plans for the reconstruction of East Wilson Street, scheduled for 2024, which could include a two-way, sidewalk-level bicycle path on the south side of the street. Details (in a pdf) here.

More holiday diet discussion

Mineral Point Road is scheduled for resurfacing in 2024 from its eastern origin at Speedway Road and Glenway Street to its intersection with Midvale Boulevard, work that may include a road diet that would remove street parking and add bike lanes.

Madison Bikes wants your input on events

The Madison Bikes board meets today from 6 to 8 p.m., in the virtual way (Zoom link here).

More importantly, you are invited to join an in-person community meeting for 2024 event planning, from 6 to 7:30 p.m. on Thursday in Room 104 of the Madison Public Library’s Central Branch, 201 W. Mifflin St. It’s an opportunity to brainstorm and begin planning events for next year’s calendar:

We want to hear from you! Do you have a specific bike-related skill you can share with the Madison Bikes community? Are you interested in volunteering to teach a class or lead a ride? Sign up to share your expertise (or the thing you wish you knew) on a topic related to biking that will benefit our community! Also, there will be pizza.

Yes, there will be pizza. Diets are for roads.

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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Newsletter Weekly Update

S. Park Street BRT; TC

Madison Bicyclist in front of the Monona Terrace. Photo: Cyclists of Madison

S. Park St. Redevelopment

Wednesday from 6:00PM – 7:30, join a virtual city meeting discussing S. Park St. redevelopment for BRT. Thursday from 5:30PM – 7:30 PM, there will also be an in-person meeting on the same topic in Fitchburg.

Madison Bikes board member Craig Weinhold mentioned these meetings two weeks ago in an in-depth blog post about the sacrifices bicyclists and pedestrians have had to make to avoid disruptions to single occupancy vehicle traffic as BRT is expanded. Bicyclist safety and accessibility on S. Park St. is key to overall safety and accessibility on the S. side. It is important to show up often to city meetings to ensure the city fully explores options to allow bicyclists and bus riders safe and convenient roadway access, instead of pitting bikes and buses against one another while refusing to prioritize safety over single occupancy vehicle convenience.

Transportation Commission updates

The Mineral Point Rd. “widened sidewalk” plans are going to TC this Wednesday. The compromised state of the bike facilities included in this project were also mentioned in Craig’s blog post (link above). Feel free to send a written comment on “Agenda Item 2” to share your thoughts on this, instructions on how to do this are always included in the TC agenda.

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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Newsletter Weekly Update

The Street Project; Midvale Bike Lanes; Atwood Construction

The Street Project film poster

Welcome to the Madison Bikes newsletter! We hope you’re keeping warm this week as you pedal your way into November.

Remember, your hands and feet will be the first to feel the cold so make sure to have good gloves that keep the water out. If you don’t have waterproof gear and you have to cycle in some nasty conditions, try this. Hack : Layer your normal gloves with kitchen or latex gloves. To keep your feet warm, doubling up on socks can help, but if your shoes are already snug, you’ll want to avoid it because it can reduce circulation. I’ve also found that wind still goes right through even with a second pair which is why I prefer hack : Wrap aluminum foil or cling-wrap around your toes over your socks. It will provide a wind-resistant layer and help keep the heat in on longer rides and it shouldn’t cause well-fitting shoes to feel too tight. Plastic shopping bags can also work in a pinch.

With those tips out of the way, here’s what you should know about bike advocacy in Madison this week.

The Street Project Film Screening

Monday night, Madison Bikes along with The Congress for the New Urbanism and the Wisconsin Student Planning Association will be hosting a screening of The Street Project, a film about humanity’s relationship to the streets. The film features real stories about traffic violence and the fight to make streets safer for bikers and pedestrians. Shot with a 500mm lens, typically used for filming wildlife, the film is intended to give a fascinating, ground-level perspective of transportation and movement and capture real-life human behavior.

You won’t want to miss this opportunity to gather with other members of the biking community and get your mind churning with ideas on how we can improve our streets here in Madison. We’ll kick things off with a happy hour at the Sett Pub at 5 PM, followed by the film screening at 6 at the Marquee Cinema, both located in the UW-Madison Union South. After the film, stick around for a panel discussion with the following members of the community at 7:

  • Alicia Bosscher, Organizer, Ride for Your Life
  • Baltazar De Anda Santana, Director, The Latino Academy of Workforce Development
  • Chris McCahill, President, The Congress for the New Urbanism – Wisconsin Chapter
  • Collin Mead, Wisconsin Bike Fed
  • Juliana Bennett, Madison Alder, Dist 2
  • Morgan Ramaker, Downtown Madison, Inc.

Midvale Blvd Bike Lane Meeting

Also on Monday at 6:30 PM, Traffic Engineering is hosting a virtual neighborhood meeting regarding Midvale Blvd Safe Streets improvements. A buffered bike lane has been proposed and would require removing some parking. The purpose of the meeting is to hear from residents, discuss impacts, and answer questions. If you bike on or near Midvale Blvd between University Ave and Mineral Point Rd, your support is needed! Check out the project page on the city’s website for more details and to register for the meeting.

Atwood Ave Bike Bridge is Here

The new bridge along the Atwood Ave path
The new bridge along the Atwood Ave path | Christo Alexander

The Atwood Ave bridge over the Starkweather Creek is up and ridable. The bridge caps off a series of improvements to the bike infrastructure along Atwood on the North side of Lake Monona. The new multi-use path goes from Lakeland Ave, past Olbrich, and down Atwood Ave and is a great way to navigate the Northern section of the “Monona Lake Loop.”

That’s all for this week. Have a safe and spooky Halloween, stay warm, and keep biking!

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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Newsletter Weekly Update

Bikeways projects, Mineral Point Rd meeting, ‘Street Project’ movie around the corner

Madison’s Transportation Commission meets at 5 p.m. Wednesday to take up an agenda that includes a pair of Bikeways 2023 projects. The Bikeways program covers “small improvements and repairs to the city bike network,” and the projects up for review fit the bill. Each is just a skinny block long and meant to ease bikes past higher-traffic interruptions in otherwise lower-traffic routes.

One of the two projects — both scheduled for construction in 2024 — would add an off-street bike path along Seminole Highway between Manitou Way and McCaffrey Drive, providing an easier entrance to the UW Arboretum. The other project would reconfigure West Lakeside Street between Gilson and Rowell streets, removing street parking on the south side of West Lakeside and replacing it with an off-street, two-way bike path close by Franklin Elementary School, Bernie’s Beach Park and Goodman Pool.

This stretch may be fresh in the minds of bicyclists, as it was part of a detour last week while the Cap City Trail was closed for repairs along the John Nolen Drive causeway. Here’s a reminder that after a break for the weekend, those repairs restart for the work week, and this portion of the Cap City is to be closed again Monday, Oct. 23, through Friday, Oct. 27. The detour will get even more use in the planned future, when it’s time to replace John Nolen bridges.

Mineral Point Road “Widened Sidewalk” meeting tomorrow

If you missed Craig’s in-depth post on the Mineral Point Rd project yesterday, here’s a reminder that a public meeting on the project is taking place on Tuesday from 5:30 to 7:30pm. The meeting will be in person at Vel Philips Memorial High School; a Zoom option is available.

More on the calendar

Today, Bike Fitchburg meets at 7 p.m. at Osprey Apartments, 5118 Lacy Road in Fitchburg.

Wednesday: District 11 Alder Bill Tishler is hosting a book discussion of “Paved Paradise: How Parking Explains the World” at Sequoya Library from 7 to 8pm.

Saturday, there is a Bike Trials Competition at Mountain Road Farm in Excelsior.

Monday, Oct. 30, Madison Bikes, the Wisconsin Student Planning Association, and the Wisconsin chapter of the Congress for New Urbanism present “The Street Project,” a story about humanity’s relationship to the streets and the global citizen-led fight to make communities safer, at 6 p.m. in the Marquee Cinema at Union South, 1308 W. Dayton St. Before the film screening is a happy hour at 5 p.m. in The Sett Pub, also at Union South. After it, a panel discussion. Admission is free, but please RSVP here.

Event flyer for The Street Project screening

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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Newsletter Weekly Update

Ride For Your Life, Bike Drive, Underpass Funding

Photo: Harald Kliems, Bike Parking at Great Taste of The Midwest at Olin Park

SUNDAY: Ride For Your Life

Ride for Your Life Madison is finally here this Sunday, October first. The ride has been discussed quite a bit in previous blog posts this summer. It is being held in memory of the tragic death of Sarah Langenkamp, as well as countless other cyclists and pedestrians killed by drivers in a country that has long prioritized motor vehicle convenience over public safety.

The ride is Sunday, October 1, 2023. Bicyclists will ride 5-6 miles at a slow pace, and pedestrians will walk 1 mile through Madison to the steps of the State Capitol. A rally to raise awareness of the need for pedestrian and cyclist safety will then be held. Ride staging begins at 2:00pm at Brittingham Park, and riders will depart at 2:30pm. The ride will end on the steps of the Capital with the rally ending at 4:00pm.

Please pre-register for the ride, and donate or volunteer if you can. All are welcome to join for the ride or the rally.

Underpass Funding

The city Finance Committee will vote on capital budget amendments on Monday. Alder Verveer has proposed two amendments that would significantly improve the John Nolen Drive project for bikes:

  • Amendment 6 would extend the project’s scope, allowing construction of a new multi-use path on the north side of North Shore Drive, from JND to Bedford
  • Amendment 7 would allocate $1M for design and another $4M for construction of a bike/walk underpass of John Nolen Drive at North Shore Drive, connecting to the path from Amendment 6, creating a safe route between downtown and the lakefront path that doesn’t rely on the bike elevator.

Send comments to financecommittee@cityofmadison.com

The Bassett neighborhood has several overlapping path projects, all of which create a network much more connected to downtown. See a map of all existing and proposed projects below, courtesy of board member Craig Weinhold.

FB4K Bike Drive

Free Bikes 4 Kidz Madison is hosting its first Fall bike drive Saturday, September 30 from 9am-2pm, with a goal of 400 bikes donated. They will spend the winter refurbishing them before giving them to folks unable to access their own. Please also volunteer to help unload bikes at the drive if you can. Gently used bikes of all sizes and styles are accepted. Bikes that cannot be saved can be dropped off with a $20 disposal donation. Bring bikes to 354 Coyier Lane, Madison, WI 53713 near Rimrock and the Beltline Highway. If you are unable to donate on the 30th, drop off Monday-Friday between 9:30-3pm at the same location. If you live in an apartment complex and see unused bikes at your bike rack, FB4K suggests asking your property manager to donate them before throwing them away!

Madison Is For People Ride

After a very well-attended first event, Madison Bikes is again co-hosting a group ride with Madison is For People. Both of our organizations believe in a Madison where safe and equitable car-free transportation is accessible to all. See the event page for more details.

The ride is roughly 7.5 miles, starting at Law Park off John Nolen Dr., near the B-Cycle station at 6pm. We’ll go counter-clockwise along the Lake Loop and end at Garver Feed Mill where we can hang out, chat, eat and drink. The pace will be leisurely, around 10 mph. Nobody will be left behind. This is a great opportunity to meet your fellow housing and bike advocates and have fun!

Sunset will be at 6:45pm, so you must bring bike lights!

Group Rides

Tuesday evening is Madison Women’s Cycling Club or the Slow Roll Ride. Friday is the Bi-Weekly Ride for Trans Rights. Saturday you can check out Brazen Dropouts’ morning Row Ride.

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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Newsletter Weekly Update

Bicycle Friendly University; Future Rides; Join the Board

The boardwalk bike path on Lake Waubesa
The Lower Yahara River Trail – A great place to ride a bike | Christo Alexander

Welcome to this week’s update! Here’s what you need to know this week about bike advocacy in the Madison area.

Campus area commuters needed

If you bike around the Madison campus, your help is needed to evaluate how bike friendly it is! UW-Madison has applied to renew its status as a Bicycle Friendly University and The League of American Bicyclists (LAB) is sending out the survey to students and any other users of the bike infra around campus. If that’s you, please take the survey here! The input received will help the LAB award their final decision and will anonymously be included in feedback to the university. Your feedback is appreciated. To learn more about what it means to be a Bicycle Friendly University, check out the LAB website. Note: the survey closes Tuesday, Oct 10th at 11:59pm PT.

September Community Ride

Not this week, but next Friday, September 29th, we will be co-hosting another community ride with Madison is for People! The ride will meet at 6pm at Law Park near the BCycle station, take the lake loop counterclockwise at a casual pace, and end at Garver Feed Mill for food and beverages. The days are getting shorter so remember to bring lights!

In addition to riding your bike and having a great time, it’s a good opportunity for anyone interesting in joining the Madison Bikes board (see below) to chat with current board members and get your questions answered. Check out the event on Facebook and let us know if you can make it. We’d love to see you there!

Ride For Your Life

rideforyourlife.org

Looking ahead to October 1st: The “Ride For Your Life”, a 5-6 mile advocacy ride will be taking place. The ride is in memory of Sarah Langenkamp, and any cyclist who has needlessly lost their life on the road. It’s long overdue that everyone stands up and demands safer places for biking and walking. The ride will meet at Brittingham park at 2pm, with a departure time of 2:30 and end at the Wisconsin State Capitol, to rally for congress to fund safer infrastructure. If you can make it, be sure to register on the website. The ride is free and open to all. Volunteers are also needed to help with crossings and other support. We hope you can participate. If you do, you’ll be helping make biking safer in Wisconsin and standing up for something you believe in, which is pretty cool.

We want you to join the board!

Yes, you! If you enjoy biking infrastructure, advocacy, volunteering for a good cause, or you just want to see fewer cars in your life, consider filling out an application. The application is not a commitment. It’s just to let us know you’re interested in getting involved.

We’re seeking members from all areas of the Madison community. We want your perspective and ideas on how to make Madison a more comfortable and safe place to get around!

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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Newsletter Weekly Update

Back into the Routine, Safe Streets, Ride For Your Life

A cyclist loading (or unloading) their bike from a Madison Metro Bus rack (h/t Cyclists of Madison)

With the first week of school over, new routes learned and fresh routines formed, hopefully there is some peace and joy that can come from a quiet week of seasonal, beautiful cycling.

This Week

On Wednesday at 5:00 PM the Transportation Commission meets virtually (agenda). Of particular note will be a review of Safe Streets Madison detailing significant improvements to Baldwin Street, Eastmorland Neighborhood, and Midvale Boulevard. On our Facebook community group, there was a robust discussion about the Baldwin Street improvement and how they could be better. You can submit your input by email to transportationcommission@cityofmadison.com, or you can register for the meeting here.

A visual summary of the Safe Street changes proposed for Eastmorland Neighborhood (source: City of Madison)

Later on Wednesday at 6:00 PM “all bodies” are welcome to participate in the party-paced Madison Queer Bike Ride leaving from Law Park.

Finally, on Friday at 6:00 PM consider joining the Bi-weekly Bike Ride for Trans Rights, also leaving from Law Park.

The City of Madison just applied to have their Platinum Bicycle Friendly Community status renewed from the League of American Bicyclists. Platinum is the second highest level, and cities need to reapply every 5 years to maintain their status. As part of the process, the League is seeking your input to gain a better understanding of local bicyclists’ experiences in Madison. Please take a minute to complete this brief survey: https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/BFC_local_Fall23

Save the date(s)

Logo for Ride For Your Life Madison.

A reminder that the Ride For Your Life Madison is coming up soon. If you haven’t registered yet, you can do so at https://rideforyourlife.org. Madison Bikes is co-organizing the event, and it would be great if we could get some additional volunteers to help.

Sarah Langenkamp was tragically killed by a truck while bicycling home from her sons’ elementary school in Bethesda, Maryland, on August 25, 2022. In the wake of her death, her family organized Ride For Your Life in Washington D.C. This event joined forces with activists across the country to improve pedestrian and bicycle safety on our streets.

This fall, Ride For Your Life is coming to Madison, WI! On Sunday, October 1, 2023, cyclists will ride 5-6 miles and pedestrians will walk 1 mile through Madison to the steps of the State Capitol for a rally to raise awareness of the need for pedestrian and cyclist safety.

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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Newsletter Weekly Update

School and UW back

There are no big meetings this week, but there are some interesting events happening. Classes start at the UW on Tuesday, so the streets, sidewalks, and paths should be back to their busy state. 

One member of our Facebook community was surprised by the massive crowds of Badger fans around Camp Randall as she returned from a ride on Saturday. Those of us who have been here awhile know not to attempt to use the SW Path before and after games, but it’s kind of a shock for newcomers!

And kids are back at K-12 classes as well, so we will probably see younger kids riding to and from school with their parents, and older kids riding in groups and going to after-school activities. Be patient if you see these less-experienced bicyclists sharing your route. Slow down and give them a little extra space. We had requests from kids during Bike Week to please slow down near the schools, yes even on your bike. 

Monday 

You can enjoy dance on several area bike paths via the Shifting Gears Festival that will take place in Brittingham Park, McPike Park, Wirth Court Park, and the Timekeeper Sculpture at the Monona Terrace from noon-6:00 pm. 

Tuesday 

The Council will consider an experimental closure of the 400-600 blocks of State Street to motorized traffic. Presumably, this won’t impact bicycling in the area, except that there will probably be more pedestrians in the street. You can read the discussion of the Downtown Coordinating Committee for more details. 

Wednesday

The city Street Use Staff Commission will meet at 10 am. One topic is Park(ing) Day, which takes place on September 15. The UW student chapter of the American Society of Landscape Architects has requested that they be allocated two stalls on Langdon St next to Memorial Union to turn them into a parklet. Park(ing) Day used to be a big deal here in Madison, but now it seems that everyone has forgotten about it. Maybe because we are indeed reallocating parking spaces for other uses, such as outdoor seating for restaurants in commercial districts, bike parking corrals, and bike lanes.

Also Wednesday, the Parks Commission will meet at 6 pm, and on the agenda is authorization to apply for a grant from Dane County to build a recreational biking project in County Grove Path. It’s unclear to me what this would be, but it looks like there are mountain bike trails planned for the park. (See pages 9 and 17 of the document for the meeting.) 

Wisconsin Bike Fed is holding a training from 12:30-4:30 pm at Oak Park Manor for those who would like to help with the Cycling Without Age program. Although their website says that you need to register by Sept 3, maybe they will still accept registrations if you call. 

The monthly Ride for Joe will meet at the Fitchburg Senior Center at 10 am. These are ride-and-learn events that cover basic bicycling topics and then go for a leisurely ride. They are geared to seniors, but anyone can join.  

These rides are in memory of Joe Imilkowski, long-time Fitchburg resident and avid bicyclist and senior center patron. These rides are geared for seniors, but all are welcome. At the request of those riding in previous months, two longer distances will be offered, about 12 and about 20 miles, principally on multi-use paths. Helmets are required. Rides will start with the topic of the month, short safety briefing, and ABC Quick Checks of bikes. The topic for September will be cool weather riding. On line registration and liability waiver are required, but can be done at ride time.

Sunday

The Bi-weekly Ride for Trans Rights will meet at Law Park at 9 am. 

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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Newsletter Weekly Update

Get out and ride

People gather before the Madison Bikes and Madison is for People social ride on Friday, August 25, 2023
Photo by Beth Skogen

In case you missed it last week…

Social Ride with Madison is for People

After a stretch of weather that made any physical activity — or even being outside — extremely uncomfortable, if not dangerous, the weather cooled just in time for our social ride in partnership with Madison is for People. It was a great ride, with more than 50 people joining us, far more than we expected. After meeting at Law Park by Machinery Row, we rode counterclockwise around the lake and ended at the East Side Club for socializing and beverages. 

Madison is for People has geared up in the last year to push for more housing and better, denser land use in the city. This makes walking, biking, and transit use easier as well, and gives more people an opportunity to live where car-free or car-lite living is practical. There is a lot of overlap in our messages, and it was great for the two groups to learn a bit more about what the other was doing.

In addition to learning about each other and enjoying a relaxed ride, this event made clear that there is a real desire for rides that make everyone feel welcome, rides where we take it slow and just enjoy the company.

What else should we do at community metings?

We’ve been looking for ideas on what we should do at our monthly community meetings, and these rides are one idea. What else would you like to see at the community meetings, especially when the weather is less accommodating to being outside? Talks and information? Movies? Social opportunities? Let us know what you’d like to see, or maybe if you have an idea that you’d like to present. You can email us at info@madisonbikes.org

The week ahead

There aren’t any city meetings that directly affect bicycling, but if you are ever interesting in seeing what committees are doing, you can access the weekly city meeting schedule and then click through to agendas on the city’s website. For instance, you might want to know what the Plan Commission or the Sustainable Madison Committee is up to this week. 

There are a couple of bike-related events this week. We won’t be holding our usual community meeting, because we just had the social ride. 

Monday, Bike Fitchburg will be meeting on at 7 pm at Oasis Café, 2690 Research Park Dr E, Fitchburg. 

Friday, the Bi-weekly Ride for Trans Rights will meet at 6:00 pm at Law Park. More information can be found at their Facebook event.

Watch out for your bike

There has been an uptick in stolen bikes posted on our Facebook Community page. Maybe this is due to all the new people in town and thieves taking advantage of people not locking their bikes, or maybe all the moving in and out has allowed unauthorized people into buildings and garages. Either way, be especially careful to lock your bike if you are in a new apartment or aren’t sure about the security of a location. And remember that you can register your bike or report a stolen bike at the BikeIndex, a national database. 

And watch out on the streets too

With all the new people in town, as well as dorm move-in Aug 30 and Sept 1, there are a lot of people that aren’t used to seeing bicyclists everywhere. And people may be lost, frustrated, tired, or generally unaware of how things roll (and walk) in Madison. Bike crashes go up significantly every year in late-August and early-September, so take it easy, and have some patience with all the new folks.

Join our board!

If you would like to help with our mission, consider joining the Madison Bikes board of directors. We are an all-volunteer organization, so the board both shapes policy and the activities we undertake as well as often doing the day-to-day work. We are always looking for people to join the board, as people step down, move, or need to change their time allocation. Everyone has a talent and skills we can use, but most important is probably enthusiasm to move bicycling and policy forward in Madison. Fill out the application by September 29. Terms start in January.

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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E-Mail Newsletter Weekly Update

Bikeways meeting recap; social ride on Friday

Last weekend was RAW weekend: The Bike Fed organized the Ride Across Wisconsin, with people biking from La Crosse all the way to Milwaukee.

Last week’s update didn’t include the public information about the 2023 Bikeways improvements that took place on Thursday. The Bikeways program is a pot of money in the city budget to create small improvements to the bike network, or to repair parts of the existing network. This round there are four projects:

  • UW Arboretum Entrance: This is a 10’ shared use path connecting Manitou Way with McCaffrey Drive, which is the western entrance to the UW arboretum. This project is contingent on the granting of an easement from the University of Wisconsin. It includes an RRFB pedestrian crossing.
  • Odana Road Cycletrack: This is primarily an on-street, two-way protected cycletrack on the south side of Odana Road from Wedgewood Way to Charles Lane, where it connects with a spur of the Southwest Commuter Path. This project is adjacent to the Odana Hills Golf Course. It includes new curb and gutter and limited pavement replacements near Wedgewood Way as well as the Southwest Commuter Path spur.
  • Lakeside Cycletrack: This is an off-street, two-way cycletrack on the south side of Lakeside St connecting two sides of the Bay Creek Neighborhood in south Madison. It includes the removal of parking on the block, pavement replacement, and new curb and gutter. This project has been discussed in a public informational meeting for 2022 Bikeways.
  • Elver Park Path: This is a repair of an existing path in Elver Park between McKenna Boulevard and South Gammon Rd., and a section of the Greentree Park Path north of McKenna Boulevard. This project will include a new culvert at the north end of the path to improve drainage.

You can watch a recording of the August 17 meeting here and send any additional feedback to mgalindez@cityofmadison.com. The next step is that the city will take the input and then bring the projects to the Transportation Commission later this year. We’ll keep you posted.

Social ride this Friday

Remember: This Friday, Madison Bikes and Madison is for People are hosting their joint social ride. Start at the Law Park BCycle Station at 6pm and ride around the Lake Loop until we hit the East Side Club for a get-together. The weather forecast looks great, and so we hope to see many of you! Facebook event link.

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.