Fitchburg Transportation Technical Committee Meeting - April 9, 2026

The Fitchburg Transportation Technical Committee (TTC) met on April 9, 2026. The vice chair acted as chair until Chair Steve R. arrived. The committee approved routine items, received staff updates on transportation and safety projects, reviewed the Richardson/Schumann intersection, and heard reports on Fitchrona Road, the County Highway MM underpass, BRT funding, and B-Cycle system performance.

Consent Calendar

• No public appearances were made for non-agenda items.
• The agenda was approved as presented by voice vote.
• The February 12, 2026 meeting minutes were approved with a friendly amendment to correct the spelling of Maggie's last name.
• The agenda was later amended by voice vote to move the Richardson and Schumann intersection review to the top of the discussion items.

Staff Report

• Fatal East Cheryl crash: Steve Mosley was hit at approximately 4 a.m. The driver jumped the curb and drove along the bike path to hit him, then struck police vehicles in the city hall parking lot and was arrested. Ross said the intentional act did not appear to be road-safety related or motivated by anti-bicycle sentiment; no TTC discussion item was planned.
• Metro Transit: Metro's service report card is expected this month; Metro will present it at a Common Council/committee-of-the-whole meeting rather than TTC, at the mayor and city administrator's suggestion. Ross will meet with Metro beforehand and will notify commissioners once a date is set; route extension/expansion questions are expected.
• Outreach and resurfacing: Round Trip presented at the March 25 committee-of-the-whole meeting; learn-to-ride events include a Metro event on March 31 and a B-cycle event at McKee Farms Park on May 6 at 9 a.m. The annual resurfacing public information meeting is expected April 26.
• Basics Act: A federal bill would increase STBG (surface transportation block grant) and HSIP (highway safety improvement program) funding, both used by Fitchburg.
• Whalen Road: Plans are 90% complete; three of four needed property owners have agreed; paved shoulders will be added; bidding is planned this year.
• Highway 14/Lacey development: Three developments (Novoaks Ranch, Osborne Home Farm, Syncopation) are coordinating traffic impact analyses (TIAs); improvements and city/developer cost-sharing are still to be determined.
• Vision Zero / Comprehensive Safety Action Plan: The grant agreement from the Greater Madison MPO was received and is under city attorney review; an RFP is expected this month. The plan budget is $300,000 with an 80-20 federal/local split; local match is available in the grant matching fund.
• Road closures: New online road-closure map automatically updates Google and Apple Maps and sends emails; staff are improving descriptions so closures show specific street segments (e.g., East Cheryl from Green Market to Lacey), and event closures (Agora Art Fair, Bird Derby, Nine Bark at the Moon, Swan Creek block party) will also appear.

Public Comments & Testimony

• Alder Bill Jetzer, speaking as a Richardson Street resident and public commenter, supported the alternative buffered/parking-protected bike lane configuration over the standard layout, citing greater safety for cyclists and pedestrians, low parking utilization, and concerns about the door zone in the standard design.
• The mayor said she heard from several neighbors while door-knocking; they were concerned about speeding on the curve, children crossing from the McKee Park path to Schumann Street, and postal carriers not stopping at the stop sign. She asked for better signage or slowdown measures.

Discussion Items

• Richardson and Schumann intersection review: Ross introduced the item as a response to mayor and resident complaints about speeds, lack of sidewalks (Resolution R185-16 requires 75% of affected residents to approve new sidewalks), and awkward transition between the McKee Park path and the road. The packet showed a standard layout with a 7-foot parking lane, 4-foot bike lane, and 11-foot travel lane; the alternative proposed by Steve Arnold would place a buffered/parking-protected bike lane on the southbound side. Members expressed mixed views: some supported painting bike lanes soon as a low-cost, reversible treatment; Rick questioned the process, the lack of packet context, and whether the goal was speed reduction, noting 85th-percentile speeds were reported at 30 mph. Staff estimated striping one mile of Richardson between Lacey and McKee would cost $40,000-50,000. Concerns included snow removal, mail delivery, trash pickup, crosswalk design, and signage. No formal decision was made; commissioners generally wanted further exploration and clearer future agenda context.
• Fitchrona Road update: Delays were caused by WisDOT's Bureau of Structures review of a retaining wall, coordination with Madison Metropolitan Sewerage District, utility relocations, property acquisition, and legal challenges. Because Wisconsin law allows condemnation for sidewalks but not multi-use paths, the project was split: Phase 1 in 2026 north of Quarry Vista Drive, Phase 2 in 2027 to the south. The bike bypass around the roundabout and the southeast connector path were removed due to condemnation restrictions; bikers would use the roundabout travel lane with signage. Alder Jetzer reported that Senator Ratcliffe's office was supportive of legislation to restore condemnation authority, and staff confirmed the bike path is already being bid as an optional item in case the law changes retroactively. Lacey Road reconstruction (Seminole to Fish Hatchery) has been pushed to 2028.
• County Highway MM underpass: WisDOT required 166-foot curve radii instead of 30 feet and a 5% running slope, forcing a skewed, longer structure under County Highway MM and increasing property needs. The design includes 11-foot travel lanes, 7-foot paved shoulders, and beam guard. The path will cut through Laniello Court, which will be vacated. Costs increased roughly 30%, but grant funding remains sufficient; the city will cover the increase. The underpass is being coordinated with the Trilogy/Syncopation developments, and a full closure of MM during construction is possible.
• BRT funding update: A $4.2 million budget amendment will be considered by Common Council, Board of Public Works, and Finance. The federal share is now expected to be 70%, not 80%; the Fitchburg BRT portion rose from $7.5 million to $25 million before cost-saving measures reduced it to $17 million. Fitchburg's 30% local share includes $1.5 million already in the 2025 CIP, plus the new $4.2 million in 2026. Funding would be debt-financed and from TID 10; the federal appropriations bill is not yet passed. Construction is still planned for 2028.
• B-Cycle presentation: B-Cycle reported systemwide survey results showing trips replaced walking, driving, and transit; Fitchburg stations had 6,300 checkouts and offset 32,000 pounds of CO2, while the Madison system had 934,000 checkouts and replaced nearly one million pounds of CO2. Ridership was lower in 2025 than 2024 in every month. High-performing Fitchburg stations included McKee Farms Park, Oak Bank, Wyndham Hatchery Hill, Dolly Bike Hub, and Novation Parkway; low-performing Civic Campus stations were smaller split stations. Fitchburg has 22 sponsored stations and each large station costs about $25,000 for 10 docks and five bikes. Commissioners discussed future station placement to connect with transit and improved bus shelter signage.

Key Outcomes

• The agenda and minutes were approved; the agenda was amended to move the Richardson item forward.
• No vote was taken on the Richardson Street redesign; staff were encouraged to keep exploring a low-cost paint-and-sign treatment and to provide more context in agenda packets.
• Fitchrona Road will proceed in two phases; the bike path will be included as a bid option so it can be built if state law changes.
• The MM underpass design will continue with the increased cost and property coordination; the city will bear the added cost beyond grant funds.
• The $4.2 million BRT budget amendment will move through Council/BPW/Finance on a schedule delayed by one meeting cycle.
• A future agenda item was suggested for B-cycle station locations and transit connections; bus shelter signage will be investigated.
• The committee agreed to drop the routine agenda-review step at the start of future meetings.
• Commissioners asked staff to push Metro Transit for detailed reasons on why requested route changes cannot be implemented in August and to consider reviewing the Metro agreement renewal as a future agenda item; traffic calming near Research Park was also proposed as a possible future discussion.