Better Streets MKE, Vol. 23 (Bike Week Edition!)
Wisconsin Bike Week 2025 is upon us! April and May were light on project updates. If you haven't already, check out our April newsletter which has a comprehensive rundown of active projects as construction season gets underway. For now, here's a selection of upcoming Bike Week (or Bike Week-adjacent) events in Milwaukee, with a few other notes as well. Go on a group ride. Get a friend out on a bike with you. Spread some bike joy. We'll see you out there! -CM
Milwaukee Bike Week Events
Critical Mass (unofficial start of Bike Week)
A (fun!) monthly no-drop bike ride, with a fabulous website. Rolling out 6:00 pm sharp.
Friday, May 30th, 2025
Rolling out 6:00 pm sharp
Start: Red Arrow Park, 920 N Water St
End: Zillman Park (Bay View Gallery Night Makers Market), 2168 S Kinnickinnic Ave
Transit: GREEN, 15, Hop, 57, 18, 33, 19, 30, CN1, 14
Bublr station at Red Arrow Park
Big Ride for Palestine
This is the fourth local group ride in solidarity with Palestine, and in support of the Gaza Sunbirds paracycling team.
Saturday, May 31st, 2025
1 pm meetup, 1:30 pm rollout
Start/end: Walker Square Park, 1031 S 9th St
Transit: 18, 19, 80, 56
Bublr station at Walker Square
UPAF Ride for the Arts
Experience riding a bike over the Hoan Bridge, along Interstate 794, and on Lincoln Memorial Drive in its natural state (without cars), all while raising money for regional arts programming.
Sunday, June 1st, 2025
Course is open from 7 am to 11 am (for registered riders only)
Start/end: Henry Maier Festival Park
Transit: Hop Streetcar, CN1, 14, 33, 30
Bike Month Kick-off Party
Amorphic Beer is hosting a bike month kickoff party featuring prizes, show and tell, competitions, guest speakers, and more. Bonus points: Join Tuesday Night Rides which will end at Amorphic for this event. TNR rolls out from Last Rites (625 S 6th St) every Tuesday at 6:30 pm.
Tuesday, June 3rd, 2025
4 pm to close
Amorphic Beer (3700 N Fratney St)
Transit: 14, 15, 66
Learn How to Conduct a Walk/Roll Audit
MilWALKee Walks is hosting a number of events during bike week, including a free workshop where participants will learn how to conduct a walk or roll audit of their communities.
Wednesday, June 4th, 2025
12:30 pm to 3 pm
Wisconsin Bike Fed office (187 E Becher St)
Transit: Green Line, 15, 54
Mayor's Bike Ride
This is a five-mile, slow roll ride with the Mayor, starting and ending at Burnham Park. Wheel and Sprocket will also be on hand for basic fixes like oiling chains, pumping up tires, and fixing flats. Full details here.
Thursday, June 5th, 2025
8:30 am to 10 am
Burnham Park (1755 S. 32nd St)
Transit: 54, 35, Purple Line
UEC Bike to the Beach Cleanup
Join the Urban Ecology Center for a slow roll from the Riverside Park location to Bradford Beach for a beach clean-up. Bikes can be borrowed from the UEC for pre-registered participants. See more here.
Thursday, June 5th, 2025
5 pm to 7 pm
Urban Ecology Center at Riverside Park (1500 E Park Pl)
Transit: Green, 22, 66, 30
Bublr station at Riverside Park on Oakland
8th Annual Promise Zone Ride
This is a slow roll ride hosted by the Northwest Side Community Development Corporation. The route will highlight developments in the 30th Street Industrial Corridor. Dream Bikes will be at the event with a mobile bike repair station as well. This is a free event but registration is required. See here for more details.
Saturday, June 7th, 2025
10 am to 12:30 pm (repairs available from 9 am to 10 am)
Garden Homes Park (2600 W Atkinson Ave)
Transit: 19, Purple Line, 12, Red Line
10th Annual Milwaukee Pride Ride
Join a slow roll from Kuumba Juice and Coffee in Harambee down to the Pride Parade, where you can either watch the parade or join the Bike Fed “Cargo Queens” Parade unit. Decorate your bike while you hang out at Kuumba before the ride! Details here, along with a form to express interest in participating.
Sunday, June 8th, 2025
11 am to 1 pm
Kuumba Juice and Coffee (274 E Keefe Ave)
Transit: 15, Red Line, 14, 66
A full listing of official Bike Week events and happenings can be found on the Bike Fed's website:
Bike Week Commuter Stations
- Urban Ecology Center, Menomonee Valley location (near the Hank Aaron State Trail) - June 2-6 from 7:30 am to 9:30 am
- Urban Ecology Center, Riverside Park location (near the Oak Leaf Trail) - June 3-6 from 7:30 am to 9:30 am
- Adventure Rock + Bike & Body Waffle Party (613 S 2nd St) - June 5 from 7 am to 10 am
Educational Events Hosted by the Wisconsin Bike Fed
- Smart Cycling Basics (Spanish bilingual) - June 3 at the Menomonee Valley Urban Ecology Center
- Adult Learn to Ride (Spanish bilingual) - June 4 at the Riverside Park Urban Ecology Center
- Smart Cycling Basics - June 5 at the Washington Park Urban Ecology Center
Other Upcoming Events
Public Update Meeting on the I-794 Lake Interchange Study
WisDOT is hosting an open house-style public meeting today to share design options for the upcoming reconfiguration of the I-794 Lake Interchange.
Thursday, May 29th, 2025
4 pm to 7 pm
Milwaukee Marriott Downtown (625 N Milwaukee St)
Transit: Hop Streetcar, 30, CN1, 18, 57, Green Line, 14, 15, 33
Pedestrian and Bicycle Advisory Committee
Meetings are open to the public and held on the third Friday of the month. You can sign up for updates on meetings and agendas via e-Notify.
Friday, June 20th, 2025
8:30 to 10:00 am
Hybrid
Zeidler Municipal Building, 5th floor
Virtual Meeting link
Transit: 15, 18, 57, GRE
3 blocks or less from the 14, 19, 30, 33, and CN1.
Bublr station on Van Buren St. near Wells St.
Surveys
Walnut/Lisbon Protected Bike Lane from 20th to 40th Streets
We highlighted this on the last newsletter but wanted to include it again, as the survey is still live. This project would extend the protected bike lane access on Walnut/Lisbon from the current terminus on 20th Street to the 40th Street intersection. The City is considering either a two-way bike lane or a one-way bike lane. A one-way bike lane would create a more consistent corridor design, which would allow people on bikes and scooters to safely go from Washington Park to Water Street without ever crossing Walnut/Lisbon/Pleasant. The right of way is large enough to do one way protected bike lanes and maintain most parking from 20th to 30th. A two-way bike lane from 30th to 40th would require cyclists to cross Walnut at 30th Street.
There's pros and cons. Generally, we here at Better Streets support the one-way bike lane option for 30th through 40th. In addition to corridor consistency, the parking utilization map does not show a need for parking both sides of the street. The danger of providing excess parking is that when parking is light, reckless drivers can and do use the parking lane for dangerous maneuvers. Light parking use may also align with times of highest danger for pedestrians and bike – dusk and darkness. This puts even those parking and walking across the street in more danger than needed. Look at the documents, reflect on your own thoughts, and take the survey especially if you would like to travel through this corridor more often.
Bublr 2.0
The city seeks to expand the Bublr bike network with 500 new e-bikes and 800 docks. You can comment on the interactive map to propose a new station or comment on placement of existing stations (and get a discount on an annual Bublr pass).
This would dramatically expand the Bublr network, which today is most heavily concentrated in the East Side, Downtown, and Walker's Point areas. The expanded station map would add solid coverage to south side neighborhoods like Burnham Park, Silver City, Muskego Way, and Lincoln Village, as well as the near west/north side neighborhoods including Washington Park, Walnut Hill, Midtown, Near West Side, Concordia, and Amani.
Spotlight on New Infrastructure: 37th Street Bike Boulevard
Some highlights from the newly completed 37th Street Bike Boulevard. Images courtesy of Cade Gerlach.
Friend of the newsletter Cade Gerlach has reported that the 37th Street Bike Boulevard appears to be completed! This stretches from Pierce St on the north end to Lincoln Ave on the south. Some highlights include the improved bike/pedestrian crossings and traffic circles at busy intersections, as pictured above. It better connects the Silver City, Burnham Park, and Layton Park neighborhoods to the Hank Aaron State Trail and the south side's east-west bike boulevard along Washington and Scott streets.
Advocacy Opportunity: Vision Zero Action Plan
Although the public comment period for the Vision Zero Action Plan draft has closed, it's never too late to write to your representative in support of codifying Vision Zero and working toward the prevention of death and serious injury in our transportation system. The draft plan is up for a vote by the city's Public Safety and Health Committee on Thursday, June 12. This committee includes alderpersons Moore (10th District), Spiker (13th District), Taylor (9th District), Westmoreland (5th District), and Burgelis (11th District).
Curious about a project? Check out Engage MKE
There are many road projects happening in Milwaukee. To learn more about them, check out the (new and improved) Engage MKE. This resource is a good place to start for understanding the major projects occurring in Milwaukee.
