Very quick look at Madison's first 4" bike signal

Madison traffic infrastructure — Sat, 09 Mar 2024 23:57:34 GMT

We got our first 4" bike signal at the intersection of Junction Road and Watts Road. This is an intersection at the edge of town, near to the future BRT terminus, and connecting two bike paths.
On one side of the intersection, the signal is activated by a loop detector; on the other side you have to push a button. The pedestrian and bicycle crossing aren't separated, which makes the signals a little confusing. But overall it's definitely an improvement.

New intersection, old problems: University Ave at University Bay/Farley

Madison traffic infrastructure — Sat, 27 Jan 2024 22:56:23 GMT

The University Ave reconstruction in Madison, Wisconsin is on hold during the winter, but much of the intersection at Farley Ave and University Bay Drive is in its final state. We can now see how some of the design choices work in practice. Spoiler: They don't work great for people crossing the intersection on foot. Given that this intersection sees a lot of foot traffic from the bus stops and the proximity of the VA and UW Hospitals, that's a problem. Small fixes are still possible, but once you have an intersection of this size and slip lanes and multiple turn lanes, dangers for pedestrians remain.