Seen in Madison last week, possibly the world record for track standing on a tandem Source: Cyclists of Madison Twitter
This Week
Social Rides: Get out your Fall layers and get outside! Monday evening you can check out Monday 40 social ride. Tuesday for the Madison Women’s Cycling Club, or the Slow Roll Ride. Wednesday evening features the Madison Queer Bike Ride, reach out to their instagram page for details. Saturday for Brazen Dropouts’ fast morning Row Ride.
Monday: Our monthly community meeting will not happen this week, as we have a board retreat. We will keep you posted with future community meeting plans. For anyone who still feels an urge to meet and talk about bike safety and accessibility, Bike Fitchburg is having their monthly meeting at Atomic Koi 6-7:30pm.
Wednesday: Transportation Commission, 5pm. This week’s agenda isn’t too noteworthy, especially compared to last week’s TC data showing fewer deaths and severe injuries since Vision Zero plans were put in place, plus exciting plans for transformational grant funding for future Vision Zero safety improvements.
Saturday: If you have been looking for a place to ride bikes competitively in a silly outfit, or to spectate while others do this, head to Angel Park Speedway on Saturday for some friendly Halloween-themed cyclocross racing. First time racers get free entry. The WI CX Series Crossfire race traditionally features costumes and a place for spectators to toss ball-pit balls at racers as they try to jump over hurdles while carrying their bikes. More info here.
It’s definitely fall out there, with some hints of early winter. We hope you’re still out there riding, and if you’re new to riding in the colder season, check out our video with some tips for riding in the fall: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=C1N-J4NWTnU
Forward to Vision Zero – Madison: Building Safe Streets for All Through Data, Smart Street Design, Equity, and Engagement
Equity priority areas for potential projects funded through the Safe Streets 4 All grant (Image: City of Madison)
At last week’s Transportation Commission meeting, the City presented it’s grant application for the Safe Streets 4 All program. This is a federal grant to help cities fund the implementation of their Vision Zero plans. Madison’s application includes projects totaling $20 million, and the list of proposed projects is impressive. Some bike-relevant examples:
Raised crossings on the Southwest Path
a path/protected bike lanes along Badger Road
protected bike lanes and intersections on Broom St
redesigning Regent St to follow Complete Streets principles
upgrading bike lanes on Park Street between Langdon and W Wash
making Whitney Way a safe and complete Street
protected bike lanes/path on W Beltline Frontage Road
dedicated funding for quick-build safety projects (and money to turn them into permanent projects if they’re successful)
dedicated funding for protected bike lanes
If Madison were to receive the grant, this could be transformational for getting closer to Vision Zero, i.e. eliminating all fatalities and serious traffic injuries. Madison Bikes submitted a letter of support for the application.
Front wheel flat fix workshop
The UW Bicycle Resource center has a Front Wheel Flat Fix workshop on the schedule on Wednesday from 6-7pm. Free and open to the UW community. Attendance is a first-come, first-served and no registration is required. https://transportation.wisc.edu/bicycling/university-bicycle-resource-center/#UBRCclasses
Pump Track Skills workshop for kids 15 and under
Madison Parks and Slow Roll Cycles are teaching kids skills at the pump track at Aldo Leopold Park on Thursday at 3pm. The workshop covers “pump track rules and safety, how to correctly pump, and how to ride a berm. Slow Roll Cycles will also offer pre-ride bolt checks and tire pressure checks on bikes. The class is free to attend, designed for kids 15 and under with a good working bike and helmet. Advanced registration is required.” More info and registration here: https://www.cityofmadison.com/cal…/learn-pump-track-skills
A rider flies over the barrier at the Trek CX Cup in Waterloo over the weekend (Credit: Harald Kliems)
First, I’ll re-up two requests from previous weeks.
City of Madison District 18 Alder Charles Myadze is seeking input on improving cycling infrastructure on the north side. See last week’s update for more details on how to give feedback.
This week is the last week to get your application in to join the Madison Bikes Board. The deadline is Friday, October 14.
This Week
All week we’ve got Bike to School Week for Lapham Elementary, Marquette Elementary and O’Keefe Middle here in Madison. Thanks to board member Kyle for helping organize these events.
On Wednesday at 5pm the Transportation Commission meets virtually. You can check out the full agenda, but probably the most interesting discussions will be centered around two Vision Zero items. First, a discussion comparing safety data between the first six months of 2021 and 2022 (spoilers in images):
Citywide Vision Zero 2022 vs 2021 (City of Madison)E. Washington Ave Vision Zero 2022 vs 2021 (City of Madison)
The second item of note is an update on the city’s application for vision zero grant from the federal government. Included in that update you’ll find a letter of support from Madison Bikes.
Coming Up
On Saturday November 19, be ready for the next bicycle collection drive supporting Free Bikes 4 Kidz. Last Saturday (October 8) marked the start of their season with a collection drive at six locations around Madison.
Last week one of Madison Bike’s board members, Robbie Webber, took some of the participants of the Bike Fed’s Healthy Communities Summit on a bike tour around Madison. To show off some of our awesome bike infrastructure.
District 18 Seeking Input to Improve Biking Facilities
District 18 Alder Charles Myadze is seeking input to improve bike infrastructure on the Madison North Side. We offered to reach out to our community — you! — to collect input where in District 18 there are gaps in the low stress bike network, danger spots, or other areas for improvement. If you live in District 18 or ride there, please send your feedback to info@madisonbikes.org. We’ll compile it and share it with Alder Myadze. We may also do a bike ride with him to take a look at the conditions on the ground. Stay tuned.
Bike To School Week Guide?
Walking and biking are excellent ways to build healthy habits, a cleaner environment and promote accessible transportation options. This year, Madison Bikes board member Kyle Hanson has organized a Bike to School Week event for Lapham Elementary, Marquette Elementary and O’Keefe Middle schools from October 10th to 14th. This event will include hand decorated yard signs, surprise “bike fairy” gifts and biking information & resource table. Organizing a bike to school event in your community is a great low effort way to introduce families to bike commuting and build new habits which could last a lifetime. Please reach out to kyle@madisonbikes.org if you are interested in hosting similar event in your community this spring and would benefit from a How-To guide for planning your event.
This Week
Lake Monona (John Nolen Dr) Waterfront Design Challenge Kick-Off
Monday, October 3, 2022 @ 6:00 pm
Madison Parks is hosting the first of three events to learn about and provide feedback on the proposed vision for the Lake Monona Waterfront along John Nolen Drive. Lake Monona Waterfront Design Challenge teams will introduce themselves and their team’s unique perspective on master plan development. The multi-use path through this park area is very popular and we hope to see this as a core part of new vision for this space. We encourage you to attend and show your support for maintaining or expanding cycling infrastructure in the new plan.
Walking Movement Leaders can be anyone who is interested in hosting walking (or rolling via a wheelchair or powered scooter) events to help peers, neighbors, colleauges, and community members make meaningful connections to one another, to the places you live and to oneself while moving at a 1-3 mile per hour pace.
This one-of-a-kind training encourages future leaders (YOU) to incorporate all your ideas for the kind of experiences you may want to host. You will be invited and supported to discern whether their one-time or recurring walking/rolling events are organized by local area/region, themes/topics, or various/shared interests. In our training we will cover each of these areas while providing additional support related to route creation, maximizing group connection, group safety, pedestrian accessibility/safety, community building, event promotion, and more.
Probably most important this week is the Madison Bikes monthly Community Meeting, Monday from 6:00-7:00 pm at Brittingham Park shelter. (In case of bad weather, we will move to Union South, so we’d appreciate an RSVP to keep you up to date.) This meeting will give you a chance to meet the current board and decide if you want to run for our board of directors. As an all-volunteer organization, the board does most of the work, although we love our super volunteers that help us out!
You can be one of those people that both runs the organization and helps decide what work we take on. Not sure if you want to be on the board? Want to know more about us and what being on the board means? Not sure if you’d be an asset to us? (Yes, we want you!) Come by to chat.
Also on Monday Bike Fitchburg has their monthly meeting from 7:00 – 8:30 pm at the Fitchburg Public Library, 5530 Lacy Rd.
Wednesday
Transportation Commission meets at 5:00 pm online. One item that might be of interest is the list of roadway projects that will be discussed in 2023. The biggest one is the rebuilding of John Nolen Drive from North Shore Dr to Olin Ave. This project won’t be built until 2026, but it will come before the TC next year.
Other projects are smaller, but it’s interesting to see what is coming up.
What are we discussing on the Facebook Community?
An article by Wisconsin Watch explains why it’s so hard to make some large roads safer for bicyclists and pedestrians in cities: They are also state highways, and WisDOT prioritizes motor vehicle traffic flow over pedestrian and bicyclist safety and comfort.
A hit and run crash involving a bicyclist at the Seminole Hwy entrance to the Arboretum. Why is there no sidewalk or bike path connecting the Arb Dr to Manitou Way? There is a clear desire line worn by pedestrians and bicyclists avoiding busy traffic on Seminole Hwy.
Bicyclists are being refused service at “drive-throughs” despite Madison ordinance requiring businesses to serve bicyclists via exterior service windows.
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.
This post was written by Mary Pustejovsky. Mary is passionate about safer streets in Madison. She has lived in Madison since 2020, and has lived in San Jose, Providence, Boston, Chicago, and most recently, Austin, Texas. She’s excited to put down roots and make Madison the best biking city in America. She has two cargo bikes (a Tern GSD and an Urban Arrow), bikes everywhere with 3 kids, and nothing makes her happier than getting more families on bikes.
What is it like to attend a neighborhood meeting about traffic safety? What are some strategies you can use to advocate for biking and safer streets?
I recently attended a Vision Zero workshop session hosted by Alder Tischler (District 11) at Sequoya Library. This was not an officially city-sponsored event, as there had been a previous session with city staff. This meeting was to get people together to discuss specific ideas for calming traffic in our community. The meeting specifically focused on Westmoreland, Hill Farms, and Midvale Heights neighborhoods.
Overall, many people are concerned about safety in our community, and have noticed a lot of speeding and crashes. However, different people have different ideas about how best to address these issues. At my table, there was one man (I will call him stop sign guy, SSG) who kept bringing up the fact that cyclists run stop signs. While that may be true, I pointed out that many drivers run red lights and speed constantly as well. I was glad to have a fellow cyclist at my table who bikes everywhere with his family.
Intersection of Segoe, Laub, and Berwyn: A lot of pavement and long crossings for people walking.
We were tasked with coming up with ideas and then presenting our top 3 ideas. SSG brings up that there are a lot of crashes at Mineral Point and Segoe. He suggests widening the intersection to have a dedicated turn lane. We write it down, but I am skeptical: Wider intersections, especially two blocks from an elementary school and a middle school, are not safer for people walking and biking. I suggest that the intersection at Laub/Segoe is unnecessary. Two streets intersecting with Segoe here is unnecessary, and removing one of them would make space for a rain garden to help with stormwater runoff. People seem interested. Other ideas that got a lot of support were raised, or tabletop crossings for the SW Commuter Path at Odana as well as Glenway. Raised crossings mean that the path is kept at grade and people driving on the street need to dip up and down to cross it, rather than making path users drop down to the level of the road. These crossings already have a median, with one lane in each direction, and the raised crossing would reinforce the message that drivers should be cautious. People at my table seemed supportive of this as well.
Raised crossing on the Cap City Trail at Russell Street
We then discussed the amount of people speeding on Midvale, especially near Cherokee Middle School. SSG seems to believe “there is nothing we can do” or “we need more education and enforcement.” Unfortunately he must have missed the Vision Zero presentation where officers from the Madison Police Department pointed out that they don’t have the staff to sit and write tickets all day. Engineering changes to the street are more effective, and they slow drivers at all times, not just when there is a cop with a radar gun. There were other suggestions too: Flashing beacons as well as speed feedback signs on Midvale to alert drivers to how fast they are going. I’m not convinced of their efficacy, but we put it down as another idea. Our final summary of ideas to the larger group included rain gardens, tabletop crossings for the SW Path, and protected bike lanes on Midvale.
Other groups had good suggestions about where to put roundabouts etc. This information was collected by my alder to share with city staff.
Overall, I recommend attending these types of meetings with a buddy if possible, as it can give you more confidence in supporting treatments that make a difference. There are always naysayers like SSG, but they are in the minority. Most people want safer streets. People want to bike but don’t feel safe doing so. Show up, and don’t worry about arguing with the negative folks. Just keep the focus on the positive changes needed. Acknowledge their opinion but redirect the conversation back to problem solving, instead of ranting or complaining. You are unlikely to change their mind, and that’s fine. Keep your focus on specific changes that you’d like to see to make the street safer.
So reach out to your alder or to city staff (traffic@cityofmadison.com). State a particular problem, and suggest a solution! So instead of “wow it’s hard to cross the street” you could say “I’ve noticed it is hard to cross XYZ street. I think it might be a good candidate for a pedestrian refuge island or curb bump outs, which would slow turning vehicles and provide more visibility for people walking.”
For our email subscribers: Because of a mistake, you are receiving this email on Tuesday rather than the usual Monday. Apologies for the delay.
Madison Bikes board open house Sep 26
It’s not this week, but I want to make sure this is on our calendar: On Monday, September 26, we are hosting an open house for the Madison Bikes board election! If you’re curious to learn what it means to be on our board or are considering running for election this cycle (lots of open seats!), join us at the Brittingham Park shelter from 6-7pm. (If the weather is really bad, we’ll move to Union South). Please RSVP to info@madisonbikes.org so that we can order an appropriate amount of snacks.
Sidewalk assessment policy
The Transportation Policy and Planning Board only has one big item on their agenda for tonight, and it may sound boring: “Street Assessment Policy Changes.” However, the question how pays for what when a street gets built or reconstructed has important policy implications. Right now, when a street is reconstructed, adjacent property owners generally pay 50% of the cost of the curb and the sidewalk and none of the cost for the driving and parking lanes. One outcome of this policy: Property owners are often opposed to adding sidewalks as part of reconstructions because they’re on the hook for half the cost. Sidewalks are crucial for accessibility and the safety of those walking and rolling. Therefore, the proposed new policy would assess the full cost of 10 feet of pavement instead; the curb and sidewalk cost would be covered by the city. Additionally, property owners would no longer be charged for the sidewalk repair program, which fixes broken and uneven sidewalks.
Slide on the proposed new assessment policy (Screenshot City of Madison)
CORP movie night
Your local mountain bike advocates, Capital City Offroad Pathfinders (CORP) are hosting a movie night at Capital Brewing’s beer garden in Middleton on Wednesday night. On screen: Biketown, ” a movie about the community that is needed to get mountain bike trails built, and the communities that mountain biking builds.” Ticket’s at $15 in advance and $20 at the door. Children under 16 are free.
Pick Me Up at the Border
Bike Fitchburg also will have a fundraiser this week. But rather than watching a movie it involves riding your bike to the Illinois border (or points in between), during the night. Pick Me Up at the Border starts at RaceDay Events in Fitchburg on Friday at 6:30pm. Registration is $15.
‘Cross in Waterloo
Cyclocross season is well under way. This weekend’s race takes place in Waterloo on Saturday. The “Battle of Waterloo” has free registration for juniors (ages 9-18) and first-time riders. Racing starts at 9 am.
A Madison rider sporting a u-lock and cable lock, allowing extra security when locking up outside. Source: Cyclists of Madison Twitter
Last Week
Rain: Wet weather made for an excellent and very muddy kickoff race for Wisconsin’s cyclocross series on Sunday, and made the bike section for Ironman Wisconsin 2022 quite a slog. Sadly it was much too wet for BikEquity’s family-friendly community ride & free bike repair event, which was cancelled. We will keep an eye out for rain dates on their social media.
This Week
Social Rides: It may dry out enough by Monday evening for a quality Monday 40 social ride. Tuesday evening is looking great for the Madison Women’s Cycling Club Taco Ride, or the Slow Roll Ride. Wednesday evening features the Madison Queer Bike Ride, reach out to their instagram page for details. Saturday is looking nice for Brazen Dropouts’ morning Row Ride. Finally, you can still register day-of for Bike The Barns on Sunday!
Thursday: MPO Complete Streets Lunch & Learn Webinar The Greater Madison Metropolitan Planning Organization is hosting a webinar from 12-1pm defining Complete Streets, discussing how they help ensure the safety of people on bikes or on foot, and discussing how to overcome barriers that make building them a challenge for cities. While primarily aimed at local planners, transportation staff, and local officials, this webinar will surely provide great material for those interested in advocating to their local, state, and national elected officials in support of safety.
Image of the wire strung across the bike path, found Wednesday morning.
A dangerous wire was found strung across the Southwest Path bike bridge over the bike roundabout multiple times last week. The last known time a wire appeared was Wednesday morning, August 31. No word yet on if the perpetrator was caught.
A railroad contractor’s detour sending cyclists against traffic on a one-way street.
An unplanned change to a railroad replacement project caused the railroad’s contractor to route a bike detour the wrong way down a one-way street. While this was not a city project, use of the city’s Report a Problem tool helped improve the situation. The city will construct a path along Broom St, and part of the W Wilson St cycletrack that Madison Bikes has long advocated for, next year. The railroad has been instructed to hold off any projects that would close North Shore Dr until that project is complete.
Madison Bikes is looking for people to join the board! Want to become more involved in local bicycle advocacy? Consider joining the Madison Bikes board of directors. Applications are due October 7. Read more about it on this post published last week.
This Week
Today (Monday), the Isthmus Dance Collective brings back the Shifting Gears Bike Path Dance Festival from 12-6 PM. Temporary performance spaces will be set up in four city parks nearby bike paths. The parks are Wirth Court Park, McPike Park, the Olin Park Vantage, and new this year; Brittingham Park.
On Wednesday, the Greater Madison MPO will have a regularly scheduled meeting starting at 6:30 PM. The MPO is responsible for comprehensive planning and decision making to build agreement on transportation investments that balance roadway, public transit, bicycle, pedestrian and other transportation needs to achieve an exceptional quality of life for all within the region. At Wednesday’s meeting, they will be discussing the 2023-2027 Transportation Improvement Program (TIP). The TIP is a 5-year planning document that is intended to help lawmakers decide what projects to fund and when. Here is the Meeting Agenda, and here is the proposed 2023-2027 TIP. Action on the TIP will be taken at next month’s meeting on October 5.
Want to become more involved in local bicycle advocacy? Consider joining the Madison Bikes board of directors.
Madison Bikes is looking for people who are dedicated, passionate, strong communicators, good compromisers, organized organizers, and able to commit time and energy to promote biking as a priority in the city of Madison. We do not have paid staff and everything we do—from advocacy to organizing to communications to events—is driven by our 15-member volunteer board and volunteers.
We will have several seats up for election on our Board of Directors, with elections taking place in December.
If you are interested in joining our board, please complete this application form by October 7 Deadline extended to October 14. If you would like to nominate someone other than yourself, please forward this post/email to them and ask them to apply.
In the application, we ask for your availability for our November board meeting. All applicants are invited to that meeting for a brief Q&A with our current board members.
Our organization is committed to the goal of building a culturally diverse and pluralistic board committed to equity and anti-racism in our work. We strongly encourage applications from people of color, women, and other groups who are underrepresented in bike advocacy.
The Madison Bikes board is an all-volunteer working board. At a minimum, we expect board members to:
Attend our monthly board meetings (6-8 pm every third Monday of the month, virtual for the foreseeable future), and our community/work meetings (6-7:30 pm on the fourth Monday of the month; sometimes virtual, sometimes in person)
Commit to doing work outside of meetings, for example organizing Madison Bike Week, attending public meetings, or writing for our blog.
Have a passion for our organization’s vision: Making Madison a city where anyone can ride a bicycle conveniently and comfortably to any place in the city and neighboring communities year-round.
Be committed to be on the board for at least one year (terms are for 3 years)
Other examples of things our board members do:
Write for our blog
Moderate our Facebook community group
Plan, organize, and promote events like Madison Bike Week, Winter Bike Week, or the Winter Bike Fashion Show (online or in-person events when those return)
Attend city-held meetings (public input meetings, City Council meetings, local and regional transportation committee meetings)
Write email templates and action alerts
Mobilize the community to advocate for bike projects
Meet and liaise with community partners (neighborhood associations, non-profits, other bike advocacy groups)
Contribute to fundraising and organizational development efforts
Are you unsure whether being on our board is right for you? We’d be happy to answer questions by email or schedule a Zoom chat with one of our current members! Just email harald@madisonbikes.org. We will also host an in-person board member candidate open house on September 26. Stay tuned for details.
