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.
It’s a quiet week on the schedule but I suppose that with school starting up many will be busy with new schedules and new bicycle routes.
Presumably the University will be wrapping up many of their summer-long projects and closures that have been so disruptive to navigating through campus. Of course, you still have a month-long closure of a segment of the path on the north side of University Ave to look forward to. Expect that in later September.
Vision Zero is getting a lot of attention from Madison Bikes, the City of Madison, and the press. Now you can explore and visualize different aspects of the data driving these discussions with the Madison Vision Zero Dashboard created by Harald. This complements and expands upon his work in the Twitter bot sphere.
Finally, on Sunday, maybe bisect your a long Labor Day weekend with a late summer classic, the Wright Stuff Century presented by the Bombay Bicycle Club. This year it’s free for everyone with route lengths ranging from 35-100 (hilly) miles.
Last Week
If you’re looking for more immediate engagement, there are plenty of discussions on the Madison Bikes Community forums. A quick glance over the last week and you’d find topics such as:
The increase in bike thefts in Madison and bicycle locking strategies
Repeated attempts to sabotage and (presumably) injure users of the Southwest path by stretching cables across at a bike bridge
A call to action to get the City of Monona to consider bicycle lane improvements on the Atwood/Monona Dr corridor
Something for everyone!
Other Stuff
You might be interested to read this article from Streetsblog USA titled “Three Common Types of Bike Laws That Are Overdue for an Overhaul.” As referenced in the article, much of the data from this sourced from this paper.
Cyclists enjoining one of the many multi-use paths in Madison. #CyclistsofMadison
Monday – Madison Bikes Meet Up
Brittingham Park Shelter @ 6pm. Come join us to chat about all things bikes! This is an informal social event, all are welcome to join. We look forward to talking with you about bicycling, advocacy, repair and pedestrian safety, and more. Light food and refreshments will be provided and you are welcome to bring your own.
Wednesday – Military Ridge Trail Input
The Madison Metropolitan Sewer District (MMSD) is planning a sanitary waste facility upgrade near Verona which could temporarily close the Military Ridge Trail during construction. On a positive note, one of the proposed options for reconstruction after the upgrade, includes connecting the Badger Mill Creek Path and the Military Ridge Trail. If this is a path you use, please make an effort to attend this meeting and ask that the Military Ridge Trail be kept open during construction and voice support for connecting the trails. MMSD is seeking public input Wednesday, Aug 24th at 5:30 held via Zoom; register here.
Thursday – Hawthorne Truax Neighborhood Plan Dialogue and Night Out
August 25, 4:00 p.m. – 7:00 p.m. at Hawthorne Elementary School. The City of Madison invites community members to review initial concepts and recommendations for the Hawthorne-Truax Neighborhood Plan covering future land use, new street connections, pedestrian and bike improvements, parks and open space enhancements, partnerships for community programs and services, and more. This is a perfect opportunity to advocate for long term bike facility investments at a relaxed family friendly setting.
Bike Theft on the Rise
Many community members on the Madison Bikes Facebook group have recently posted reports of attempted or successful bike thefts. In particular, e-Bikes are frequently targeted due to their high resell value. The likelihood of theft can be minimized with a few reasonable steps like investing in a good bike lock, registering your serial number on BikeIndex and storing your bike in a secure area (when possible). In addition, e-bike owners can remove their battery to make their bike less attractive to theft.
TC and MPO meetings cancelled
Both the Madison Transportation Commission and Greater Madison Metropolitan Planning Organization (MPO) meetings on August 24 are cancelled.
Tyranena Oktoberfest Ride Cancelled
Unfortunately, the annual Oktoberfest Ride hosted by Tyranena Brewery in Lake Mills was cancelled this year and probably indefinitely. A number of factors lead to increasing costs and dropping participation, made this event non-longer viable.
William Cummings was killed on August 1st in a traffic crash while riding his bike on Pflaum Road. Join the Madison Bikes community and his family to dedicate a ghost bike in his memory and to show support for building a city where everyone can ride a bike safely and without fear. Join us tomorrow (August 17th) at 5:30 pm on the corner of Pflaum Road and Mustang Way.
The new BCycle station in McFarland’s McDonald Park has gone live. This is right at the other end of the Lower Yahara River Bridge from Lake Farms Park, so it will provide an important connector for those who want to commute into Madison or just borrow a BCycle to enjoy a ride on the bridge and around the parks on either end.
Stewart Tunnel
Letter from Department of Natural Resources (Image: Friends of the Badger State Trail)
Some great news came out about the currently-closed Stewart Tunnel on the Badger State Trail. The DNR has chosen an alternative for fixing the tunnel based on considerable public input and analysis of cost alternatives. While we don’t have a date for when you can avoid the hilly detour caused by the closure of the tunnel, funding will be requested in the next DNR budget.
City wayfinding survey
And a reminder to take the city survey about which style of wayfind sign you prefer on the multiuse paths. On our Facebook Community, many people have questioned why these signs are needed or if the information will be useful. Don’t pedestrians and bicyclists already know how far things are and how long it takes?
Not necessarily.
We get a lot of out of town visitors, new residents, and people just trying out the paths for the first time. Cues as to where you are don’t always exist on the paths, especially parts of the SW Path, Cap City, or Cannonball Trail that have fewer cross streets or are in less developed areas. If you didn’t know how close Monroe St was — with all the amenities it offers — you’d never guess riding on the SW Path. And studies have shown that giving people a time reference to nearby destinations encourages walking and biking. They may see the sign and think, “Oh, it’s only ten minutes to walk there? It would take me that long to find a parking space!”
The week ahead
Monday
The Transportation Planning and Policy Board meets at 5:00 pm online. They will be discussing the Complete and Green Streets plan for the city. This plan will eventually create a modal hierarchy that will change the transportation planning assumptions for the city to prioritize walking, then transit, then bicycling, and finally driving. Parking is even below driving in use of the public right of way. Needless to say this is very different from the conventional way transportation decision making has been in most U.S. cities. The plan will also create street typologies to recognize that a neighborhood residential street will function differently than a street where offices and big box stores are the dominant land use.
The TPPB will also be discussing the Transportation Demand Management plan for the city, which will require new developments to offset their predicted traffic generation with actions and amenities that incentivize not driving (providing transit passes, bike share stations or memberships, improved connections for walking, paying for parking separately from rent, etc.)
The TPPB will not be making a final decision on these, but the discussions should be interesting.
Construction updates
The intersection of North Shore Drive and John Nolen Drive will be closed later this month so that the railroad tracks can be replaced. Bicycle access through the area will be maintained either by the path (with possible delays or brief closures) or via a lane on the road. The work doesn’t start until Aug 26, but it might be a good plan to start thinking of alternative routes.
Also, towards the end of this month a more significant closure will happen. As part of the ongoing University Ave reconstruction, the Campus Dr Path will be entirely closed for about a month from Marshall Ct to Highland. This includes the crossing of University Bay Dr as well as the portion of the path that runs next to the VA Hospital parking lot. There will be no way to get through on the path, so plan your detour now. There will be a marked detour starting at Shorewood Blvd (if you are headed east), but depending on your destination, you may want to choose a different route.
We’ll keep you updated when the closure will actually happen.
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.
