Bicycle Policy

RECOMMENDATIONS FOR REGULATING BICYCLES ON PICNIC POINT
Passed by the Campus Natural Areas Committee, May 2, 2005

(Current name: Lakeshore Nature Preserve Committee)

• Bicycles will continue to be permitted in the following portions of the Lakeshore Nature Preserve: the Howard Temin Lakeshore Path, the paved cut-off in Bill's Woods, and the gravel trail on the main spine of Picnic Point.
• No bicycle traffic of any kind is permitted elsewhere in the Preserve, including on Picnic Point, whether on paved roads, smaller trails, or off-road areas.  Signs should be added at all important entry points to identify forbidden areas and announce penalties.  (The current fine for off-roadway bicycle violations under UW Code 18.06 starts at $181.)
• Explicit and significantly increased efforts should be made to influence bicycle behavior especially on the main gravel trail on the spine of Picnic Point so as to discourage friction between bicyclists and other users.
• The formal speed limit for bicycles on Picnic Point will be 5mph or less—no greater than the speed of a slow jogger—and signs should clearly announce this.

About Bicycle Policy in the Lakeshore Nature Preserve

The following statement was adopted by the Campus Natural Areas Committee, forerunner of the Lakeshore Nature Preserve Committee, on May 2, 2005.  Not all of its recommendations have been implemented, partly for budgetary and staffing reasons, and partly because some have not proven to be feasible for other reasons.  But the general goal of encouraging respectful interaction between bicyclists and pedestrians where both use trails in the Preserve--and of reminding bicyclists that they are not permitted on the majority of trails in the Preserve--remains very much in place.

Bicycles on Picnic Point: New Policy Initiatives 
Campus Natural Areas Committee May 2, 2005

On May 2, 2005, the Campus Natural Areas Committee met to consider three alternative courses of action in response to concerns that have been expressed to us about bicycles on Picnic Point.  In brief, these alternatives were: 1) affirm the status quo of largely unregulated bicycle access to the main trail on Picnic Point; 2) engage in a more proactive effort to educate and regulate bicyclist behavior on Picnic Point to diminish negative interactions between bicycles and pedestrians; or 3) ban bicycles from Picnic Point altogether.

Our discussion of this issue has been informed by very helpful comments we have received from many interested individuals who have expressed strong views about bicycles on Picnic Point, both for and against.  We held a well-attended public input meeting on Wednesday, April 13, where speakers were roughly evenly divided on the question of whether bicycles should be banned from Picnic Point.  In addition, we have received several dozen emails and other communications from individuals expressing their views on this matter.  Throughout the process, we have become even more impressed than we already were by how much people care about Picnic Point and the lakeshore green spaces to which it is connected.  We've also been grateful for the thoughtful way that people have shared passionate views about this issue while still maintaining a civil and respectful tone toward those with whom they disagree.

Our own committee was significantly divided on the three policy alternatives described above.  Individual members argued strongly for and against the possibility of banning bikes from Picnic Point.  Although we differed with each other about whether to implement a ban, it's fair to say that we agree on several important points, which can be summarized as follows:

• We all wish to encourage people to use Picnic Point while reminding visitors that everyone is responsible for helping protect this uniquely beautiful place and the special experiences it offers.  We hope it can serve as a model for how a community can both enjoy and care for an urban natural area at the same time.
• Picnic Point should be a quieter, calmer, more natural space than the bustling city around it.  If bicyclists are to continue using it, they must respect the slower pace of this natural area and travel at speeds no greater than a fast walker or slow jogger.  If they cannot do this, a ban would be an appropriate response.
• Bicyclists and walkers can coexist on Picnic Point only if they treat each other with mutual respect and deference.  Those who overtake others from behind must give ample warning before they pass, and do so at safe, slow speeds.
• Bicyclists should be encouraged to consider leaving their bikes at the entrance of Picnic Point if they're so inclined, with enough bike racks to make this to do.
• There is no disagreement whatsoever about bicycles anywhere other than the main graveled trail on the spine of Picnic Point (or on the Lakeshore Path or the paved cut-off that passes through Bill's Woods): bikes on other trails or in off-road settings do serious damage, are strictly forbidden, and are subject to fines if they break this rule.

Despite our strong consensus about wanting to discourage bicyclists who travel inappropriately on Picnic Point—by riding too quickly, by endangering pedestrians, or by going places they should not—several committee members said they were impressed by the thoughtful comments we received from people who described how much they loved being able to ride their bikes to the end of Picnic Point, and who begged us at least to try to influence irresponsible bicyclist behavior before we consider a complete ban.  Although some committee members believed we had already tried and failed to change bicyclist behavior in just this way, others believed that we had not in fact made as serious an effort as we should.  Some committee members were especially concerned not to limit access to Picnic Point—especially limiting access for UW-Madison students who use bicycles to get there from the main campus—if there were any way to avoid doing this.

With this as background to our deliberations, the Campus Natural Areas Committee finally took two votes.  The first, on a motion to ban bicycles from the main graveled trail on Picnic Point, failed to pass by a margin of 3 to 4.  The second motion, the principal elements of which are stated below, called for continued bicycle access to Picnic Point on the condition that much more visible and intentional efforts be made to encourage responsible bicyclist behavior there.  This motion passed by a margin of 5 to 1.

It is important to remember two things about this decision, which we explicitly intend to revisit in academic year 2006-7.  First, the Campus Natural Areas Committee is an advisory shared-governance body, and final responsibility for policy matters like bicycle access to Picnic Point resides with Alan Fish as Associate Vice Chancellor for Facilities Planning and Management (and, of course, ultimately with Chancellor John Wiley and the Board of Regents).  Alan Fish has indicated his support for the general recommendation that bicycles continue to have access to Picnic Point under the terms described below, so this will be the new policy for bicycles on Picnic Point for the next two years.

The second thing to remember about this decision is that the recommendations below are complex, and not all can be implemented immediately.  Some have budget implications and may not be possible to put in place until resources become available to do so.  But we will move forward as best we can with our available staff and funding to change the culture of bicycle use on Picnic Point, encouraging slower and more respectful speeds, so that bicyclists and pedestrians do not interfere with each other's enjoyment of this beautiful place.

We ask everyone who uses Picnic Point to help us in this effort.

Bill Cronon, Chair, Campus Natural Areas Committee