City of Oshkosh, Wisconsin Pedestrian and Bicycle Circulation Plan

Origins and Destinations
Generally, motorized and non-motorized transportation users share similar origins and
destinations - but use different modes to accomplish their goal of arriving at a destination
safely and efficiently. Arterial and collector roads that effectively deliver many motorists
also provide the most direct and continuous routes for many bicyclists. These systems,
however, are not always designed to accommodate the special needs of the average
bicyclist. When roadway conditions are unsuitable for bicyclists, infrastructure design
treatments may be used to improve the roadway or an alternative corridor may be
selected. To reduce the potential of bicycle–vehicle conflicts where possible, the
Stakeholder/Steering Group chose to use alternate street networks for the bicycle facility
routes to improve overall safety and comfort of riders.
Potential use patterns are not always reflected by the existing transportation system, but
can be estimated by locating trip generators (origins and destinations) and projecting
areas of population growth and future land use patterns.
Generally speaking, people are less willing to commute to work by bicycling and
walking if the travel time is more than 20 minutes. Directness of the route, physical
condition of the bicyclist, number of stops and availability and proximity of bicycle
parking facilities will affect how far one is able to cycle in 20 minutes. The average
adult cyclist commonly travels 3 to 4 miles in 20 minutes. From a bicyclist's standpoint, this
3-4 mile trip defines the service area of each destination and helps to define commuting
use patterns. Recreational riders will ride much farther in a day - trips of 30 to 40 miles
are not unusual and tours of 80 to 100 miles are offered regularly during the biking
season in Wisconsin. Fitness riders and bike racers will travel 30 to 50 miles in a typical
training ride.
At the regional level, other communities and major recreational destinations are the prime
trip generators. Within the urban and suburban areas, these destinations also include
local shopping, employment, and government centers.
4.1.4 TRANSIT INTERFACE
The City of Oshkosh Transportation Department provides public transportation
services in the Oshkosh area. Owned by the City of Oshkosh, limited service is
also provided to the City of Neenah. Most transit users access the bus system on
foot and rely on pedestrian facilities. Inadequate pedestrian facilities not only
make it more difficult to use the bus, they can also pose safety hazards to riders.
Increasing the number of shelters or street furniture for pedestrians waiting for
buses may improve comfort levels for transit users. Transit users who access the
bus system via bike must rely on the availability of an adequate location to lock
their bike once arriving at the bus stop, or must bring their bicycle with them.
Oshkosh has recently started retrofitting buses with front-end bicycle racks so users
can transport their bicycles to their destination.
4.2 COMMUNITY AND USER CHARACTERISTICS
This section includes Census 2000 data related to walking and biking in the Oshkosh
area. It should be noted that most of this data is derived from the “long-form” which was
randomly distributed to 1 in 6 households and while this should not skew results, the time
of enumeration may have an impact. The Census is recorded in March making conditions
in north central Wisconsin less than ideal for biking and walking. The data should be
used to establish a baseline of users in the planning area, to compare to other
communities, and to reserve for evaluation against the next Census (2010).
CITY OF OSHKOSH BICYCLE AND PEDESTRIAN PLAN 4- 3