FYI - Got this on my neighborhood listserv (see pasted message below). I am disappointed that Shiva has decided not to support lights, but it is not a complete surprise.
One point I will make is that she argues that there are many bike/ped projects in the city that are in need of funding, presumably implying that the money for the lighting could be moved to another project. If the lighting project does not happen, and that is still up in the air, I hope that the funding indeed moved to another bicycle/pedestrian project and not simply left on the table or moved to some other part of the Engineering budget (i.e. another road project.) As also noted, any other alder could move this project forward. Just because Shiva is not going to support it does not mean that it won't get enough votes on the Council to progress. I am fairly certain that Alder Solomon is still in favor of the lighting, and not all Council members feel that the concerns of the neighbors should overshadow (pun intended) the safety of all path users. As always, if you have an opinion, you should express it to your elected officials. Robbie [begin forwarded message] Dear neighbors, First and foremost I want to thank you all for your patience as citizens, city staff, and alders have been discussing whether to add lights to the SW Bike Path for the past nine months or so. It has been a passionate debate on both sides of this proposal. I would summarize the main points as: • Those in favor see lighting the bike path as a necessary step to promote a sense of safety for users and support more commuters biking through thisvery busy bicycling commuting route. One can indeed argue that just as streets have lights, so should other major transportation corridors such as a bike path. • Those opposed have raised concerns over how intrusive the lights could be for those living immediately adjacent to the path. In addition, they have pointed out that the dark nature of this path is part of its attractiveness in an urban setting and that there have not been major safety issues on the path. They have also raised the issue of cost/benefit and whether, given the cost, this project is a top priority for improvement of pedestrian and bike infrastructure within the city. Alders Solomon, Ellingson, Schmidt and I met last week to discuss this project and where we are at based on the input we have heard from citizens and staff. I expressed to my alder colleagues that at this point I do not support moving forward with this project. My main reason for not being supportive at this time is that, in balancing the feedback I have received on the project (I would qualify it overall as pretty much split in the middle in support and in opposition) and the city’s long list of non-controversial pedestrian and bike infrastructure improvements, I see the allocated funds better used in other projects. I do believe that there are compelling arguments on both sides and I hope we can continue to have a civic and civil discussion on how to improve Madison’s pedestrian and bike infrastructure. Next steps? Any alder can decide to pursue this project. Certainly the 4 alders whose districts are affected do not all need to be in agreement for one of the alders to decide to pursue the project. If an alder decides to pursue it, it would go before the City Board of Public Works for approval of a contract bid for light installation and then before the City Council. If that were to happen, I will make sure to let you know so that you can email and/or testify. Again, I want to thank all of you who have shared your opinion on this project with me. I realize that my position will be supported by some of you and opposed by others. I hope that regardless of where you stand on this issue we can continue to work together to improve the bike and pedestrian infrastructure for our city. Best, Shiva Bidar-Sielaff District 5 Alder [end forwarded message] Robbie Webber Transportation Policy Analyst State Smart Transportation Initiative www.ssti.us 608-263-9984 (o) [email protected]
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