UW-Madison has hired a consultant to conduct a study on whether to light and pave the Howard E. Temin Lakeshore Path, a controversial idea that has been debated off and on for three decades. But it’s unclear why the study is being conducted now and who might be resurrecting a proposal to make these changes to the path.
“It’s not the case that anyone is pushing for any particular outcome, “ Kelly Tyrrell, spokesperson for UW-Madison, says in an email. She says only that the study “stems directly from a task force convened in 2022 to discuss the issue.”
Tyrrell did confirm that interim Vice Chancellor of Finance and Administration Rob Cramer authorized the lakeshore study.
An Associated Students of Madison (ASM) task force on the issue met three times in the 2021-22 school year but did not issue a formal recommendation after a consensus emerged against both paving and lighting the path, according to Madison Ald. MGR Govindarajan, who was involved in the task force as ASM’s legislative affairs chair.
While he supports lighting, if not paving, the path, Govindarajan says he is “frustrated” by the university’s introduction of such a divisive issue in the middle of summer. The study was announced mid-July and a public input session was held July 16 at the Memorial Union. “There has been no communication with students or student government,” he says.
Govindarajan says he was informed of the public meeting on July 9, and was then told it was being rescheduled. But he received no word of the meeting’s rescheduling a week later even after reaching back out.
Tyrrell says the meeting drew a cross-section of interested parties: “A collection of faculty, staff, students and community members attended the July 16th public meeting.”
Over the years, lighting and paving the path has been proposed to alleviate student concerns over safety and to expand Madison’s bicycle infrastructure. But lighting the trail has been opposed by both conservationists, who have concerns over harming the diverse lakeshore wildlife, and the UW-Madison Police Department, who believe it could increase crime on the path by creating hiding spots for attackers through the shadows and artificial light.
“Historically, it’s been very hard to get the groups to agree,” says Govindarajan.
Govindarajan speculates the study could be happening now if one of those groups — specifically the police department — has changed its tune on the issue. UWPD spokesman Marc Lovicott says “We’ve never really taken a stance either way.” Mostly, he says the department has suggested students avoid the path at night in favor of better lit roads such as Observatory Drive, but rejects the characterization of the path as dangerous. According to both Lovicott and Tyrrell, there have been 10 crime reports on the path since 2020, and no violent offenses.
However, in 2022, a woman reported being sexually assaulted on the path and in the same year a student reported a man confronting him and calling him racial slurs. But for the most part, Govindarajan agrees with Lovicott, saying “It’s very rare something happens on lakeshore path.”
Dylan Brogan, communications manager for the city of Madison, says the lakeshore path study is solely a university project. “The mayor is always for paved bike paths, but it isn’t up to her,” he says.
The study will likely get more attention as students return for the fall semester. For now, Govindarajan says he is hearing similar feedback to what he heard two and half years ago; most students support lighting, but not paving the trail.
Tyrrell says there’s still a long way before any specific plan could be unveiled, saying the university plans to hold more feedback sessions in the fall. One meeting is tentatively planned for October with a date to be determined.
