Spring 2023 is election time. The Spring Primary is on February 21; Spring Election is on April 4. The results of those elections can have a great impact on biking, walking, transit, and housing. Madison Bikes, together with Madison is for People and Madison Area Bus Advocates, reached out to all candidates for mayor and common council to ask them about their positions on transportation, housing, and sustainability.
The bounding area for the West Area Plan region (Image: City of Madison)
The in-person meeting was cancelled last week due to weather and will probably be rescheduled soon. In the meantime, you can make comments on the interactive map. It’s a good opportunity to highlight areas where you enjoy biking or where you wish there were better connections.
In case you missed it last week, the Bike Fed’s summer youth camp programs are open for registration. Also, plenty of good info on the site even if a youth camp isn’t your bag!
Last Week
On Friday morning, many hearty cyclists came out and stopped by our bike station despite the attempted knockout blow delivered by the big, wet Thursday snowstorm. It was somewhat treacherous conditions for all road, path and sidewalk users due to the late-night freeze following a day of sloppy conditions.
Who doesn’t love SWAG? (Photo: Harald Kliems)
With warmer temperatures than we’ve had in the past, it was good to see faces (both old and new) and sunshine. Thanks to everyone who stopped by, along with our sponsors and partners for the coffee and good times.
The path conditions look pretty good, all things considered! (Photo: Harald Kliems)
Finally, Groundhog’s Day was two week ago, but we still seem to be in this time loop where we get the same big storms on Thursdays. Until then, we’ll see great melting conditions that should leave paths and sideroads pretty rideable (sorry skiers). Watch out for refreezing, but otherwise enjoy!
In case you missed it: This week is International Winter Bike to Work Day. Or as we like to call it: International Winter Bike Anywhere Day. As per usual, the weather will be dubious, but we have a great line-up of events!
7-9am: AM Bike Station at the Monona Terrace (look for us just off the path next to the bike elevator parking lot). We will have hot coffee donated by Cafe Domestique, snacks and swag! Be ready to share why you winter biking… The first 15 people to show up will get a Madison Bikes buff!
4-7pm: Bike Happy Hour at the Settle Down Tavern’s (117 S Pinckney St.) outdoor Tundra Club! There will be Tundra Club hot toddy drink specials, solo stoves and fire pits to keep us toasty.
Starting at 5pm: $10 cocktails at the Hilton Garden Inn Madison Downtown (770 Regent St, right off the SW Path) AND $8 flatbreads from 5-7pm!
noon-10pm: $1 off your first pint at Working Draft Beer Co (1129 E Wilson). Just mention Winter Bike Day and the discount will be applied.
As the days grow longer in the new year, it’s time for Madison Bikes to look back on everything that happened in 2022. In 2021, we were responding to traffic violence, strategic planning, and adapting to the challenges Covid continued to present for getting together. This year saw similar challenges, and lots of encouraging signs for the future.
Bike Events and News
Madison Bikes hosted and participated in a number of events in 2022. In February, we were out on the Capital City Trail with a coffee and pastry station for International Winter Bike to Work Day. Thanks again to our generous local partners for providing coffee, treats, and discounts to keep commuters warm.
Photo: Harald Kliems
Ride the Drive was canceled for only the second time since 2009 (2020 being the first). Madison Parks hosts this event and chose to prioritize other programming this year, citing challenging staffing shortages that had contributed to an understaffed and poorly executed event in 2021.
In July, we were excited to check in with Dr. Dirk von Schneidemesser at the Memorial Union Terrace for our first in-person social since 2020. Dirk visited us in 2019 to talk about his key organizing work that helped pass the first bike law in Germany, and shared some good tips for keeping a community focused on bike safety, including ensuring language used when covering crashes does not blame victims or use euphemisms like “accident” that can make traffic deaths feel mundane and unpreventable
We worked with the WI Bike Fed for their Healthy Communities Summit event in September and had fun leading summit attendees on an afternoon tour of local bike infrastructure. On Halloween, Madison Bikes board members Harald Kliems, Robbie Webber, and Caitlin Hussey joined city Pedestrian and Bicycle Outreach Coordinator Colleen Hayes on the WORT Access Hour to talk about biking and walking in the winter. We talked about how to get started if cold-weather biking is new to you. If you’d like to listen to the program, you can find it in the WORT archives (Monday, Oct 31 at 7:00 pm.).
Healthy Communities Summit. Photo: Madison Bikes
We organized a packed Madison Bike Week from June 5-11 with dozens of local organizations hosting events throughout the week, along with a ridealong with the mayor and a Madison Bikes party outside to cap things off. We also gave out $1500 to local organizations hosting bike week events for the first time in our first series of small grants. Sadly, we cannot mention 2022’s bike week without remembering Taylor Dunn’s death. On June 7th he was riding his bicycle to work around 4am when he was struck and killed by an intoxicated motorist at the intersection of Mineral Point Road and High Point Road. A vigil was held, and a ghost bike was placed to create a memorial for Taylor.
Biscuits 4 Bikers at Bike Week with GRiT and other supporters. Photo: Harald Kliems
While data show overall reductions in crashes causing serious injury as Vision Zero projects are implemented, the number of driver vs bicyclist crashes causing serious injury has not significantly changed. TOPS data show 2022 was the deadliest year for Madison bicyclists on record (going back to 2001), with 3 riders killed by drivers. Predictably, all crashes involved roads and intersections designed for high vehicle speed with minimal separation of drivers and bicyclists. Will Cummings was killed in August while riding his bike on Pflaum Rd. A ghost bike placement and dedication was held on August 17th with Will’s family and friends. MPD blamed Will’s death on a poorly designed bike lane. In October, a man was killed after being struck by a driver while crossing John Nolen Dr. at the N. Shore Drive crossing of the Capital City Trail. An investigation into this crash is ongoing.
Madison Bikes Participated in the city’s World Day of Remembrance talk on November 15th, where Mayor Satya Rhodes-Conway gave a moving speech in remembrance of her grandfather and brother, who were killed in a car crash, and reaffirmed her commitment to fulfilling the city’s Vision Zero goals.
Later in November, Madison Bikes board member Aaron Levine gave a presentation to the Lake Monona Waterfront Ad Hoc Committee to convey the huge opportunity for bike safety and capital accessibility presented as the John Nolen and Lake Monona Waterfront are slated for a massive design and rebuild project that intends to transform the parkway in the coming years.
The Monday after the new year, we hosted Holiday Fantasy in Lights at Olin Park without cars! The Sheraton graciously hosted a pre-party from 4pm-5pm with hot chocolate, snacks, and swag. A very large turnout, and relatively mild weather made for a great event.
Madison Bikes President Harald Kliems rides through the lights. Photo: Ilana Bar-av, from Cap Times coverage of the event
Big Safety & Efficiency Plans
A number of consequential city plans and programs relevant to our mission were funded/approved this year. The city’s Vision Zero Action Plan was approved. This lengthy document outlines where crashes causing severe injury and death are occurring, who is affected by them, steps the city will take to eliminate these crashes completely by 2035, and how progress will be measured. Madison Bikes has been a stakeholder in the engagement group providing input on this plan. Unfortunately the city did not get a multi-million dollar federal Safe Streets For All grant it applied for to help jumpstart this program, but can reapply again for FY23. This program gives out $1 billion per year of grants over 5 years to local governments for safe streets projects as part of the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law.
The Complete Green Streets guide was finalized in late 2022 and complements the Vision Zero Action plan in reframing the goals of street design to be focused first on safety and accessibility for users of all modes of transportation, rather than moving traffic first and squeezing any other priorities afterwards.
Photo: Transportation Modal Hierarchy chosen by Madison residents surveyed during Let’s Talk sessions used to inform the Complete Green Streets guide
The Safe Streets Madison program approved its first two batches of smaller-scale projects designed to increase traffic safety, and improve bikeability and walkability. These projects range in estimated cost from thousands to tens of thousands of dollars, with total approval of about $1,000,000 in projects. The High Injury Network created as part of the Vision Zero process guides project selection, with most projects focusing on intersection modifications and vehicle speed reduction strategies.
An updated Transportation Demand Management program will help ensure large residential or commercial developments, employers, and institutions are incentivized to accommodate modes of transportation other than driving alone when applying for new building or parking permits. This effort works in tandem with the new Transit-Oriented Development Overlay Zoning District encouraging higher-density development within ¼ mile of high-frequency transit and BRT. A big Transit Network Redesign centered around BRT was approved in June, and the project broke ground in December.
While these ambitious new programs align with our mission in a number of ways, there will inevitably be many bumps in the road as individual projects are designed and implemented. We look forward to many new opportunities to advocate alongside all of you in the coming years.
New Infrastructure, Planned and Built
Overall, it was a slow year for new bike infrastructure with projects postponed due to staffing shortages, contractor availability, and design conflicts. A handful of exciting projects were approved in 2022 to be constructed in 2023. Highlights include a number of significant bike/ped safety and usability improvements slated for the Atwood Ave. rebuild from Fair Oaks to Cottage Grove Rd. A compromise plan endorsed by Madison Bikes was approved for this project after extensive advocacy efforts and strong alder support. A plan for the Hammersley Road project from the Southwest Path to just west of Whitney Way will create a new multi-use path and eliminate turn lanes to make crossing Whitney Way safer. Community and alder support for on-street parking removal were key to making this project happen. Remember to talk to and thank your alders!
A handful of projects were completed this year. A stretch of Tokay Boulevard was upgraded from unbuffered to buffered bike lanes. Buffered bike lanes were also installed on Old Middleton Road from Eau Claire to Capitol Ave. Previously, there was an unbuffered bike lane between N. Eau Claire Ave. and Old Sauk Road, and no bike infrastructure further West. Getting buffered bike lanes required removal of on-street parking from almost 2.8 miles of road!
Resurfacing of the notorious “hairball” intersection (John Nolen Dr., Williamson St., S Blair St., and E. Wilson St.) was also completed. Making this intersection safe for all ages and abilities would require accepting a reduction in motor vehicle throughput. While Madison residents are generally willing to make this tradeoff, the Wisconsin DOT often is not. That said, we did win some safety improvements. Crossings of John Nolen/Blair from the North and South are better separated from traffic, and the slip lane onto Willy St. is narrowed. A vehicle lane on E. Wilson up to S. Franklin St. was replaced with a buffered bike lane and significantly more pedestrian space.
The Cap City Path intersections at Ohio Ave., Jackson St., and Russell St. were all upgraded to at-grade crossings when surrounding streets were resurfaced, while Ohio Ave. and Jackson St. were both narrowed to one lane. We are excited to see more of these raised intersection crossings and intersection narrowing planned for a few 2023 bike projects!
The Aldo Leopold Pump Track project that began in 2021 completed an awesome Skills Loop in 2022, and plans to add a “shred to school” trail in the future to allow kids to easily ride between Leopold Elementary and all of the fun at the park. The collaborative work between the city’s MadBAT program and local residents, businesses, and nonprofits that allowed this project to happen is truly inspiring. After much debate, the western end of Vilas Park from Edgewood Avenue to the shelter was finally closed to motor vehicle traffic in June, with plans for more bike/ped improvements to come.
2023: Good Things to Come
Persistence from elected officials, nonprofits, and our large community of advocates is essential to ensuring the many ambitious plans enacted this year can eventually create a city any person of any age or ability can comfortably navigate without a car. We are grateful for the many individuals and organizations that have taken time to join us this last year in organizing for bike events and projects, reaching out to elected officials, and partaking in so many other impactful actions. Happy New Year.
It’s the 2023 International Bike to work Anywhere Week! Unlike prior years, the weather for winter bike week is expected to be quite balmy with afternoon temperatures exceeding freezing most days. In celebration, the City of Fitchburg and Madison Bikes will be hosting bike commuter stations on Tuesday and Friday respectively. See below for more details…
This Week
Monday
The Transpiration Policy and Planning Board (TPPB) will be meeting at 5pm this week to primarily discuss amendments to the City of Madison Official Map to include future streets in accordance with the Odana Area Plan.
Tuesday
Celebrate Wisconsin Bike Week 2023 with a pit stop at the Velo UnderRound from 7am to 9am, the confluence of the Badger State and Capital City State Trails and the Southwest, Cannonball, and Military Ridge Paths! Hosted by Bike Fitchburg, the City of Fitchburg, and the Fitchburg Chamber of Commerce. Enjoy bagels and coffee, pick up Dane County bicycle maps, and get minor mechanical adjustments. Learn more about Bike Fitchburg and our local advocacy for everyone who rides or walks. Learn more…
Wednesday
The Transportation Commission will be meeting virtually at 5pm. One potential topic of interest for cyclist is the Davies/Dempsey Project Review and Feedback. This project follows the popular Lake Monona bike route and provides neighborhood access to Frank Allis Elementary School. Traffic Engineering is proposing a 10′ shared-use path along the entire route and a realignment of the Maher Ave. intersection improve pedestrian visibility. It would be great if you could register your support for agenda item #2, if you live in this area or use this route frequently.
7-9am: Madison Bikes will be hosting a bike station at the Monona Terrace (next to the bike elevator parking lot). We will have hot coffee donated by Cafe Domestique, snacks and swag!
4-7pm: Bike Happy Hour at the Settle Down Tavern’s (117 S Pinckney St.) outdoor Tundra Club! There will be Tundra Club hot toddy drink specials, solo stoves and fire pits to keep us toasty.
In preparation for the upcoming City of Madison Common Council and Mayoral election, Madison Bikes will be asking candidates to respond to our questionnaire about biking and transportation in Madison. We will post their responses on Feb 16th (my birthday!). We encourage you to take a look and make an informed decision about who to vote for on April 4, 2023.
Mayoral Questionnaire
Bike Network: Madison Bikes wants all residents to have access to a low-stress bike network that makes biking safe and convenient for people of all ages and abilities, no matter where they live in the city. As mayor, what would you do to makes this vision a reality and close the current gaps in our network?
Transportation Climate Impact: In Madison, about 40% of greenhouse gas emissions come from the transportation sector. How do you think the city should go about reducing emissions from that sector over the next 5 years?
New Policies: Over the past years, the city has implemented a number of major policy initiatives around transportation: The Metro Network Redesign, Complete Green Streets, Transit-Oriented Development, Vision Zero, and others. As a mayor, what is next? What are your major policy initiatives around transportation for the next 5 years?
Council Questionnaire
Complete Green Streets: Madison recently adopted a Complete Green Streets policy that prioritizes walking, biking, transit, and green infrastructure over driving and car parking when it comes to allocating our public right of way. Are you committed to implementing this policy, especially when a project requires the removal of car parking or inconveniencing drivers?
Vision Zero: Madison committed to eliminating all fatalities and serious injuries from traffic crashes by 2035. Yet in 2022, 14 people were killed, including 3 people riding bikes, and 74 were seriously injured. Which roadways and intersections in your district should be prioritized for safety improvements, and what strategies would you use to ensure improvements are implemented?
Bike Network: Madison Bikes wants all residents to have access to a low-stress bike network that makes biking safe and convenient for people of all ages and abilities, no matter where they live in the city. Where in your district do you see major gaps in this network and how would you propose to fix these gaps?
Transportation Climate Impact: In Madison, about 40% of greenhouse gas emissions come from transportation. How do you think the city should go about reducing emissions from that sector over the next 5 years?
Adventure Bike Summer Camp
This summer Bike Fed is running two youth Adventure Bike Camps (ABC). Campers will experience Madison by bike, and learn to be a safe, independent cyclist. Travel via the Capital City Trail, Southwest Commuter Path, Cannonball Path and more to explore the lakes, UW Arboretum, parks, local shops, and the city’s hidden gems!
June 12-16th from the Madison Bicycle Center for grades 5 and 6
August 7-11th from the Middleton Wheel & Sprocket for grades 6,7 and 8
Job Opportunity: Madison Pedestrian Bicycle Improvement Technician
The Wisconsin Department of Transportation has an opening for a part-time bike/ped improvement technician covering the Madison area. Please get the word out to anyone you know who maybe interested.
The Pedestrian Bicycle Section of the Traffic Engineering Division within the Department of Transportation is looking to fill a part-time position that is a key part of making Madison one of the most bicycle and pedestrian friendly cities in the United States. The work involves direct responsibility for a range of specialized programs, projects and activities relating to the support of traffic engineering pedestrian and bicycle projects. In particular, this work involves management of pedestrian bicycle parking and other small infrastructure, assisting with gathering data and counts, assisting with pedestrian and bicycle wayfinding and other signage, and managing bike and pedestrian map creation… Learn more
Lone winter bicyclist on the SW Path Credit: Harald Kliems
How are you handling the snow?
In the last couple of days we all got to test our dedication to winter biking, and specifically biking in the snow. While some were thrilled to see how their skills on fat bikes, studded tires, or even the “skinny tires cut through the snow” theory played with the snow, others opted for jumping on the bus or walking through the white stuff.
Whichever strategy you chose – and there is no right answer – be careful out there. With the temperatures dropping and plowing only partially down to bare pavement, it is both slippery and a mixed bag of surfaces. Even some of the main roads were snow-covered on Sunday afternoon (when I was forced to drive across town to a location with no bus service and no good bike route option.) Remember that salt doesn’t really work below about 15 degrees, so the streets are going to remain dicey for a few days.
Weigh in on the Lake Monona Waterfront Design Challenge
One vision for a new Monona waterfront. Credit: James Corner Field Operations
This past Thursday the three finalist teams for the Lake Monona Waterfront Design Challenge presented their ideas for what the lakefront could become from Machinery Row to Olin Park. All three designs featured improved and expanded bicycling paths and separation of pedestrians from through bicyclists. Traffic calming and/or reducing the size of John Nolen Drive was also a prominent theme.
I would say that all the designs were ambitious, and whether the designs will be implemented, or which portions we will see in the future, is still very much up in the air. Our Facebook Community had a lot to say about the designs. But remember that commenting on the official project website is the only way that your opinions will be recorded.
If you missed the presentations, you can view the recordings and check out the slides on the city website linked above. That’s also where you submit comments, questions, and concerns.
The week ahead
It’s a pretty sleepy week for city meetings, but one that stands out as important is a public meeting on Tuesday, Jan 31, to discuss the reconstruction of Dempsey Rd and Davies St between Cottage Grove Rd and Buckeye. As this is part of the Lake Monona Loop, the city plans to make it more friendly to all ages and abilities.
“After previous public meetings and receiving significant public input, City Staff recommends a proposed design that includes a 26-ft wide street (two, 11-ft lanes with 2-ft gutters), a 10-ft wide shared-use path on the westerly-side of the road, and a 5-ft sidewalk on the easterly-side. The shared-use path will continue the path on the northerly-side of Cottage Grove and provide an all ages & abilities bike route along the popular Lake (Monona) Loop Route.”
More information on the project and a link to register for the Zoom meeting can be found here.
Mark your calendars or submit comments
Winter Bike Day
Winter Bike Day is February 10. We will have more details soon, but expect to see AM coffee stops and happy hour gatherings after work.
Name the snow plows
You still have time to name the snow plows used on Madison streets, including the little guy that plows the paths we all love.
West Area Plan
The city is starting to hold meetings on the West Area plan that will determine land use, transportation, parks and open space, and basically how the area will look and operate in the future. This covers from Midvale in the east and Lake Mendota in the north to the Beltline on the west and south. There will be in-person meetings on Feb. 6, 9, and 13 to start the discussion. All three meetings will have the same content, and they will also be virtual options on the same dates. Registration for the virtual meetings and details of the times and locations for in-person at the above link.
West Area planning boundaries
What would you like to see for this area? Where are there missing links? What should change or stay the same? You can also submit comments at the link above.
Sycamore Park
If mountain biking is your thing, you may be interested in this posting from the Capital Off-Road Pathfinders regarding plans for Sycamore Park.
“As many of you know, CORP helped install temporary trails at Madison’s Sycamore Park last fall. Parks is now working on a new master plan for Sycamore Park; if you believe permanent trails should be a part of the park, please make a point to attend one of the upcoming virtual public meetings [on Feb 27 and March 30.]”
Details on how to attend the meetings can be found at the link above.
Cars made way for cyclists at the Holiday Fantasy in Lights at Olin Park on Monday, giving those on foot or two wheels one last chance to see the display for the season. […] Everyone loves (the) Holiday Fantasy in Lights, but if you’re not in a car it’s kind of like, you can go through on your bike, you can walk through, but you have to weave through the cars,” Kliems said, “so we thought it’d be great to have one day to take your time walk through, take your stroller, bike through.”
Cyclists of Madison has a new virtual home on Mastodon. Follow us there: https://botsin.space/@cyclists_of_msn
Safe Streets Madison
The Transportation Commission will meet on Wednesday, and the Safe Streets Madison program is on the agenda. As a reminder: Safe Streets Madison was created last year to combine a number of smaller funding pots and use them more effectively. With a data-driven approach, projects are prioritized based on their safety benefits and to close gaps in the biking and walking network, as well as their cost. City staff twice a year create a list of top-scoring projects and then bring that to the Transportation Commission for approval. You can find the first batch of proposed projects, totaling over $600,000, here.
Bike Fitchburg meeting
Bike Fitchburg switched up their monthly meeting format. Each month they will meet at a different bike-friendly business in the city on the 4th Monday. Tonight it is at Race Day Events/Griessmeyer Law on Sub-Zero Parkway. Meeting starts at 7 pm.
Lake Monona Waterfront Design Challenge
Screenshot of our board member Aaron Levine’s presentation to the ad hoc committee
The process to create a new master plan for the Lake Monona waterfront between Machinery Row and Olin Park is moving along: The three design teams will present their final proposals at the Central Library on Thursday. The meeting is in person, but it will also be streamed live on City Channel. After the public has provided input on the proposals, an ad-hoc committee will pick one proposal and send it to the Board of Parks Commissioners and the Common Council for approval. Back in December, Madison Bikes presented our priorities and concerns to the ad-hoc committee. You can watch a recording of our presentation here.
International Winter Bike Day: February 10
Save the date: Like every year, Madison Bikes will celebrate International Winter Bike Anywhere Day in early February. This year the day falls on a Friday, and we’re exploring some after-work celebration options. More details to come, here and on Facebook.
winter biking… The first 15 people to show up will get a Madison Bikes buff!
Healthy Communities Summit. Photo: Madison Bikes
