Thanks, Steve for the information! I guess the South Central Region is more winter-bike friendly than some other areas, as I had always thought the DNR left it up to local jurisdictions to do these types of things. And since my only winter-bike-trail experience was in Dane County, I could only extrapolate from previous years.
The Military Ridge Trail south of PD has generally not been plowed. The Cap City Trail has only been plowed because of a volunteer. For quite a few years after it opened, there was no winter maintenance at all, and the County's response was, "We don't have money for that." A response that always irked commuters that were already irked about paying a toll for their "road." The only other winter-bike trail experience I had was in Madison, which obviously does plow the trails. I figured we were the exception. Robbie Webber Bike Walk Madison Steering Committee www.bikewalkmadison.org Join our group on Facebook! On Thu, Feb 10, 2011 at 2:22 PM, Steve Arnold <[email protected]>wrote: > I spoke with Lloyd Eagan, Regional Director, South Central DNR, and Dana > White-Quam, regional trail coordinator about plowing the Badger State Trail. > They both gave the same story: > > It has always been the intention to pave and plow the Fitchburg segment of > the trail for winter use. (No salt will be used, so there may be a thin > layer of ice or snow on the trail.) > > At the beginning of this, the first winter season for the trail, DNR staff > were going to do this work, but after some equipment breakdowns, DNR > contracted with a private company to plow the trail in conjunction with its > commercial plowing contracts. (This is the same individual that volunteers > to plow the Cap City Trail.) Normally the trail should be plowed by the end > of plowing operations around the county. If it has not been cleared 3-4 > days after it stops snowing, that's a problem that should be reported. > > At cross streets where road plows throw up banks of snow across the trail, > the contractor is expected to punch the trail through so it's passable. > Also, the City of Fitchburg has been asked to help keep trail-road > intersections open during its plowing operations and during post-plowing > cleanup, when city crews clean up sidewalks at intersections, fire hydrants, > bus stops, and storm water drains. > > This summer, the DNR will determine whether it's most effective and > cost-effective to maintain the trail during the winter by contracting with > private contractors or the City of Fitchburg, or do the work in house. > > Those of you who follow state politics know that the DNR is under > tremendous pressure, with many, many unfilled positions. I hope keeping > trails usable is the kind of "customer service" that Gov. Walker has in > mind. In any event, you can report problems with, and I hope, express your > gratitude for winter maintenance of the Badger State Trail to: > Dana White-Quam, [email protected], 608 444 5127 > Steve Johnston, [email protected], 608 523 2335 > They are sure to appreciate knowing that someone is using the plowed trail. > Be kind to these people. They're working for us! > > (If I have any of this wrong, Dana, please let me know and I'll write a > correction.) > > Regards, > Steve Arnold, Fitchburg Alder, District 4, Seat 7 > 2530 Targhee Street, Fitchburg, Wisconsin 53711-5491 > Telephone +1 608 278 7700 · Facsimile +1 608 278 7701 > [email protected] · http://Arnold.US > Become a supporter: like http://facebook.com/ArnoldforAlder. > >
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