As gas prices continue to soar, the Wisconsin Bike Federation is busier than ever connecting people to their communities through cycling.
The pandemic boosted national interest in both recreational and commuter cycling, and this has led to a conversation about how communities and companies in Northeast Wisconsin can increase their bike friendliness. As a statewide nonprofit that’s active in every county, the Bike Fed plans educational programming, lobbies at the statehouse and helps facilitate official “Bicycle Friendly Community” certifications in Wisconsin through the League of American Bicyclists.
“I love helping businesses become more bike friendly,” says Community Engagement Manager Michelle Bachaus, who works out of the Bike Fed’s Appleton office. “It changes the community culture and the business culture. It reduces sick days, increases creativity and strengthens loyalty to the company.”
Bachaus says there are clear links between bicycling and economic development — from talent attraction through increased quality of life to the link between biking and local shopping. (“We don’t bike to big-box stores,” she points out.)
Menasha is the latest New North community to earn Bicycle Friendly Community certification, joining Appleton, Green Bay, Sheboygan, Sheboygan County and Sturgeon Bay. Appleton leads the pack, having achieved silver status in the program. Madison is the only Wisconsin city with platinum certification.
Bachaus says urban spread, not weather, is the biggest barrier to bicycle friendliness in the New North, noting that cold, snowy Minneapolis has one of the nation’s highest ratings for bicycle friendliness in large part because of its commitment to infrastructure. Ensuring Wisconsin makes bicycle and pedestrian considerations in road construction is one of her organization’s biggest areas of emphasis.
“You’re only doing a street once every 20, 30 years or so,” she says. “So there’s not much positive in saying, ‘We’ll get to it next time.’”
Classes on bicycle-friendly driving and savvy city cycling are part of Bachaus’ work, and a recent grant from the Green Bay Packers Foundation is allowing the Bike Fed to teach 20 to 30 courses in Brown County this year in conjunction with the opening of the new Baird Creek Greenway Bicycle Skills Park. She says the driver classes are focused on how to share roadways with cyclists and protect children on bikes. The cycling class also emphasizes rules of the road and works to instill confidence in city cyclists to become their own best advocates.
Championing equity
Bachaus is proud and quick to point out cycling’s inclusive aspects, especially in Northeast Wisconsin. Oshkosh was the first U.S. location for the Denmark-born “Cycling Without Age” program. Appleton resident Cheryl Zadrazil, who four years ago helped found a Fox Cities chapter that is now known as Trishaw Transit/Make the Ride Happen, says the program — which provides free rides on “trishaws” for people who are unable to pedal themselves —has been life-changing for many community members. Trishaw, Zadrazil explains, is a made-up term referring to rickshaw-like, three-wheeled bicycle trailers with bench seats for passengers.
The program, which was forged in partnership with the East Central Wisconsin Regional Planning Commission, Fox Cities Greenways and Lutheran Social Services, connects volunteer “pilots” with individuals who want or need bicycle rides — to the library or farmers market, for example, or along the many recreational trails in the tri-county area.
“It’s an adventure that gets people outdoors in a way that they haven’t been,” Zadrazil says. “We have this enormous trail development, and a lot of seniors don’t have access to the trail system besides a wheelchair — which is limited. Cycling keeps you connected in the community.”
“When I ride past your house and you’re outside working on your flowers, I’m going to say hi,” Bachaus says. “I like to say it changes my city into my hometown. It’s a culture changer, which is good not just for our happiness and well-being but the people we attract, the businesses we attract and how we come together.”
Bicycle Friendly Communities in Northeast Wisconsin
Silver Certified:
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Appleton
Bronze Certified:
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Green Bay
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Menasha
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Sheboygan
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Sheboygan County
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Sturgeon Bay
Source: wisconsinbikefed.org
