As bike sales increase in Madison, so does bike traffic

Some bike shops in Madison have seen a significant spike in sales since Gov. Evers issued his first 'Safer at Home' order in March.

"[We’ve seen a] 20-25% increase," Trek Madison West Manager Jake Jones said. “This entire rack of bikes actually went entirely, 100% empty.”

Jones said his store had such a profitable year in 2019, that his staff ordered more inventory for the spring and summer season in 2020. Jones added that if his staff didn’t do that, they would have run out of bikes at this point.

Across town, Len Mattioli of Crazy Lenny’s E-Bikes has also seen a 25% increase in his sales compared to last year. He said the bigger sales have made for busier bike paths.

"The trail that goes from Verona to Mt. Horeb, I wanted to take a ride out there,” Mattioli said. “It was packed, I could not find a place to park."

Because of the congestion around the Lake Loop in Monona, Mayor Mary O’Connor issued a new rule.

"We get a lot of bike riders from all over," Mayor O’Connor said. "In this part of Tonyawatha trail, I issued a no parking order on the west side of the street, and a large part of my reasoning is so people practice social distancing,"

As of now, the no parking order is in effect until the end of July 2020.