Bicycle Investment Commission Meeting – April 1, 2026

The Bicycle Investment Commission of Fitchburg, Wisconsin, met on April 1, 2026, to discuss public works projects impacting the bike network, legislative updates on e-motos, trail counter data, B-cycle usage, and upcoming events. Commissioners and staff reviewed infrastructure challenges, data collection improvements, and advocacy efforts.

Consent Calendar

• The draft minutes from January 21, 2026, were approved unanimously after a motion and second with no discussion.

Public Comments & Testimony

• Steve Arnold, 2530 Turns, urged the commission to take on an action item from the Bicycle and Pedestrian Plan, specifically the biking-on-sidewalks item. He challenged the commission to move forward with a project between meetings.

Discussion Items

• Fitcherona Road Reconstruction and Condemnation Issues: Public Works staff (Ross and Phil) presented updates. Due to Wisconsin’s condemnation laws prohibiting eminent domain for bike facilities, two planned bike bypasses at the Fitcherona/Lacey roundabout were eliminated because property owners were uncooperative. The city cannot condemn land for bike infrastructure, only for utilities. The southeast connection is important for future connectivity to South Stoner Prairie. The project is split into two years: 2026 (north of Quarry Vista) and 2027 (south to Tonto). Bids open end of April, award end of May, construction starts second week of June.
• County Highway MM Bike/Ped Underpass: WISDOT is requiring a 166‑foot curve radius for the trail, forcing a skewed tunnel and likely removal of Laniello Court connection. Construction scheduled for 2027.
• Updates from Governor’s Bicycle Coordinating Council (Jeremy Crosby): Discussion focused on e-motos (illegal vehicles sold as e-bikes) that exceed legal definitions. The state is working on a bill to define e-motos and regulate them uniformly. The bike industry supports this. Fitchburg may pass a resolution calling for state/federal action, and Middleton is interested in a similar approach.
• Traffic Counter Data (Phil): Seven TraffX counters provide longitudinal trail usage data but are limited (infrared, no mode detection). The counters were originally used to support Bicycle Friendly Community status, but the League did not accept the data. Staff are now exploring using the data to create seasonal multipliers for short-term counts. There is interest in moving some counters to capture commuter routes (e.g., Cannonball/Post Road).
• Telram Counter by Bike Fitchburg (Steve Arnold): A multimodal counter on McKee Road provides 20 months of data. Combined with manual counts at Velo Under Round, these data will be used for the 2027 BFC application.
• B‑cycle Report (Jeremy): Fitchburg has 22 stations with modest usage; most used stations are Oak Bank, Wyndham, McKee Farms Park, Swan Creek Park. The system is growing with new developments. A free month membership is available with code FREEMONTH.
• Bike Fitchburg Update (Steve Arnold): Upcoming events include a bike giveaway and rodeo (April 4), Celebrate Trails Day (April 25), Bike to Work Day (May 15), and the brewery ride (June 6). Bike Fitchburg will lead the 2027 Bicycle Friendly Community application.
• Announcement: Dane County’s active transportation plan is open for comment until May 13, 2026.

Key Outcomes

• Approval of January 21, 2026, minutes (unanimous).
• The commission noted the loss of bike bypasses at the Fitcherona roundabout due to condemnation limitations; staff will seek alternative routes.
• The commission agreed to consider moving two trail counters to better capture commuting data.
• The commission will explore a resolution on e-moto regulation and coordinate with Middleton.
• Upcoming events and Bike to Work Day ride with the mayor were announced.
• A tragic fatal incident on March 24, 2026 (driver intentionally jumped curb, hitting a cyclist on a multi-use path) was acknowledged; no further action by the commission at this time.