City Invites Public to Celebrate its New Autumn Ridge Path

The public is invited to a ribbon-cutting at 2 p.m., Dec. 12, 2024 on Madison's east side to celebrate the City's newest multi-use path, Autumn Ridge. The ribbon cutting will be located at 4346 Commercial Avenue, Madison, Wis.

The Autumn Ridge Path will create a shared-use path connection between Milwaukee St. and Commercial Ave (north of Highway 30), including a new bridge over Highway 30. The project will improve safety and accessibility for non-motorized modes of transportation to cross Highway 30, better connecting neighborhoods on either side of the highway. The Autumn Ridge Path expands the greater bike network of the area, as the path connects (via local streets) to the existing overpass over Stoughton Rd (Highway 51) at Portland Pkwy, through the Eastmorland neighborhood to the recently constructed Garver Path, and finally to the Capital City Trail and Downtown Madison-area. Long term plans include extending this path network further to the northeast.

Starting from the south-end of the project, the Autumn Ridge Path includes reconstruction of the existing path through Hiestand Park (to improve and widen the path to 10 feet). The Path continues through the Engineering-owned greenway property east of Hiestand Park, and then connects via Stein Ave (a local, low-volume street) to a new path segment through an existing greenway adjacent to the Thompson Rd ramp off Highway 30. The Path continues adjacent to the Thompson Road ramp, climbing in elevation until it reaches the new bridge overpass over Highway 30, and then loops down on the north-side of the highway, connecting onto Ziegler Rd, another local, low-volume street that connects to existing paths within Sycamore Park.

Funding

The Autumn Ridge Path is funded by a substantial federal grant ($2.5 million), which covers the majority of the project costs, the remaining costs are made up with local City funding ($2 million). The project has been under construction since early-June 2025, with the most significant part of this project being the new bridge overpass over Highway 30, which includes three prefabricated trusses over Highway 30 and Commerical Ave, as well as a multi-span loop on the north-side bridge approach.

The ribbon cutting event is open to the public. If media plans to attend, please RSVP to Hannah Mohelnitzky via email.

Autumn Ridge Path Project Page

Street Meets: Autumn Ridge Path

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