By Cinnamon Janzer for Next City.
Broadcast version by Mike Moen for Wisconsin News Connection reporting for the Solutions Journalism Network-Public News Service Collaboration

At Madison, Wisconsin’s nine public libraries, residents can check out books of all kinds, from hardbacks and paperbacks to ebooks and audiobooks. They can check out movies as DVDs and Blu-rays. And since last year, library card holders can also check out electric bicycles.

Madison’s public libraries are part of a growing number of bike libraries in cities and towns from coast to coast. A list of U.S. bike lending libraries curated by StreetsblogMASS reporter Grecia White documents 35 such programs, from Vermont to Texas. While they all look a little different and work a little differently, they all do the same thing — increase free access to bikes.

As a 2021 report by People for Bikes notes, there are a number of social, cultural and physical barriers that keep cities across the country from creating inclusive biking communities, from unequal distribution of biking infrastructure to prevailing perceptions of cycling as an activity for white men. A study in Portland, Oregon, found that car traffic, know-how, and space needed to maintain and store a bike are among the biggest barriers to bike use.

But cost, the researchers found, gets in the way, too. Even the cheapest road bikes still cost a couple hundred dollars, and the cost can go well into the five-figure range. For those who need an extra boost, most electric bikes cost at least $1,000. Municipal bike shares can help with access issues, but their payment infrastructure doesn’t work for those who are unbanked.

Enter bike libraries. In Madison, as long as you’re one of the 62% of city residents who have a library card, you can check out an electric bike from one of the city’s libraries for free. This is thanks to a partnership with Madison BCycle, an e-bike sharing company in the city whose parent company is Trek, a bike company based in nearby Waterloo, Wisconsin.

Last year Bcycle came to the Madison Public Library Foundation with an idea for a Community Pass Program that would give library card holders access to more than 300 electric bikes across the city.

“Making bike share more accessible in our community is a top priority for us,” Madison Bcycle’s general manager Helen Bradley said in a press release for the program’s launch last September. “Launching the Community Pass Program is one way we can ensure that everyone in our community has access to bike share as a transportation option.”

Instead of requiring the use of a credit card or a smartphone to unlock an electric-assist bike from one of the city’s more than 50 docking stations, Community Pass users check out an access fob from the library instead. The fob passes can be checked out for up to a week at a time. Each of the city’s nine public libraries have two passes available. So far this season, from March 15 until the end of last month, the city’s libraries have seen 279 fob check outs.

“We have nearly two million visits a year in our nine libraries in Madison, so it’s a place where a lot of people are coming and going every day,” explains Tana Elias, Madison Public Library’s digital services and marketing manager. It’s an equity initiative she adds, noting that it gives people the chance to rent a bike if they haven’t ridden one in a while as well as the chance to choose a bike over a taxi or an Uber.

“It’s an opportunity to choose to be a little healthier in your day-to-day activity. But also, if you haven’t ridden a bike recently, it’s a good opportunity to get out there and try it without making a huge commitment.”

Because Madison Bcycle’s infrastructure was already in place, including docking stations outside several library locations, there were only a few puzzle pieces to fit into place. In the end, the waiver that riders sign is from Bcycle so they’re handling the liability. In addition to managing the check-out process, the library foundation purchased helmets to complement the program, so users can check those out too if they like.

Because some of the docking stations are older than others, the technology is different between them and sometimes users had trouble getting the fobs to work right away, but the library has solved that with an information sheet that they co-created with Bicycle that explains how to use the fobs at different docking stations. Plus, “they upgraded some of their stations and they tried a new fob. It was definitely a back and forth testing process with a lot of feedback on both sides,” Elias says.

At the Student Government Association bike library at the University of Massachusetts Amherst campus, the process is a bit more straightforward. The program that’s been running since roughly 2011 checks out cruiser bikes — chosen for their durability, accessibility and comfort — to the school’s students, faculty and staff.

The program has been on pause since the pandemic, but Ibrahim Akar, the SGA’s chief of staff, plans to relaunch the program next month. The key to their re-launch has been building out a waitlist and replenishing the bike supply that went from roughly 45 pre-pandemic to 11 today.

In November, Akar plans to advertise pop-up check out events online and on social media for the bikes that can be checked out for an entire semester and eventually a full year before getting an online reservation system up and running next semester. The bike library is free to use, each bike comes with a lock, and repairs are covered by an on-campus bike co-op that the SGA has partnered with.

“Working in the SGA, we work towards meeting the needs of students on campus and a lot of students would highly prefer to ride a bicycle than wait for the bus,” Akar says. “When you have a bicycle, you can leave on your own schedule and there’s a lot of fun that comes with riding a bike as well. You get to just enjoy the view and breathe in some fresh air. So obviously, if that’s something that the students want, we’re going to work as hard as we can to be able to bring that to them.”

Cinnamon Janzer wrote this article for Next City.


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Cities and towns across Massachusetts hope to increase young voter turnout in local elections by lowering the voting age to sixteen or seventeen. Somerville, Northampton, Southborough and Concord are just a few of the municipalities which have attempted but failed to secure state approval.

State Sen. Becky Rausch, D-Norfolk, said allowing young people to vote on local matters helps ensure they'll keep voting throughout their lives.

"That voting power fosters a real sense of civic duty and does in fact encourage higher turnout rates among young adults," she said.

Opponents contend teenagers lack the ability or motivation to fully understand what's at stake in an election. But Rausch points to Takoma Park, Maryland, where the turnout rate for sixteen and seventeen-year olds exceeded that of any other age group for the first election in which they were allowed to vote.

Rausch is sponsoring legislation to allow Massachusetts' municipalities to lower their voting age for local elections without approval from the state legislature but it's been tabled for the session. She says it's just one of a few issues where home rule gets in the way of local autonomy. Still, she said young people are already engaged in local issues, often related to their schools, and many students hold jobs and pay local taxes.

"And they are active members of every community I represent, and they are both contributors to and beneficiaries of community and local government services," she continued.

Rausch added the effort is part of civics education, which was solidified as a centerpiece of K-12 education in Massachusetts in 2018, and which received a significant funding boost from the state legislature this past year.


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Minnesota is closing in on the 35th anniversary of a volunteer program for clearing litter and debris along highways and rest areas.

With spring in full bloom, officials call on residents to maintain this service.

In the early 1990s, Minnesota launched its Adopt a Highway initiative.

Last year, roughly two thousand church groups, community organizations, business teams, and individuals filled up more than 42,000 bags of trash.

The Department of Transportation's Spokesperson Anne Meyer said about 900 sections of state roadways are available for adoption this year.

By pitching in, she said volunteers allow MN DOT staff to focus on other needs.

"Filling potholes, fixing fences," said Meyer, "really keeping roadways safe."

She added that the program also saves taxpayers money.

People considering volunteering can adopt a roadway section or rest area for two years and clean it at least twice a year. There's also an option for a one-time clearing of garbage near a state highway.

The agency provides training, resources, and safety vests. The state observes the program's 35th anniversary next year.

Meyer encouraged drivers to use caution if they approach an area with volunteer crews at work.

"A lot of our volunteers do go out and pick up trash on the weekends," said Meyer. "So, that's a time to really be alert out there for those volunteers - to slow down, to give them space, to do their job safely. "

Meyer said areas outside Minneapolis and St. Paul tend to have more opportunities for highway adoption.

More details are on the department's website, including a list of local coordinators around the state.




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Concerns about potential voter intimidation have spurred several states to consider banning firearms at polling sites but so far, New Hampshire is not among them.

Only a dozen states and Washington, D.C., prohibit both open and concealed-carry weapons at voting locations.

Emma Brown, executive director of the Giffords Law Center to Prevent Gun Violence, said most of the bans were enacted after the 2020 election, when unfounded claims of widespread voter fraud took hold.

"The risk of gun violence at the polls is heightened," Brown contended. "Which means that legislation at the state level is even more critical than it ever has been."

Brown argued America's elections are free and fair, and prohibiting guns at polling sites and government locations is constitutional. Opponents countered the bans unfairly disarm law-abiding gun owners.

Recent surveys reveal election workers have faced increased threats and harassment since the 2020 election with one in three reporting some form of abuse. And nearly half of election workers said they are concerned for their colleagues' safety.

Brown pointed out armed intimidation tactics disproportionately target people of color and add to the growing exodus of election workers.

"This is a threat that we can't ignore," Brown stressed. "These attacks have also served as a deterrent to Black and brown election workers, who've historically been a really key part of ensuring that our democracy endures on Election Day."

As state legislatures consider banning guns at voting sites, legislation in Congress known as the "Vote Without Fear Act" would place a nationwide ban on weapons within 100 feet of a federal election facility, with exceptions for on-duty law enforcement and security personnel. It has been languishing in a House committee for a year.

Support for this reporting was provided by The Carnegie Corporation of New York.

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