City of Madison to Test Removal of Williamson Street Peak-Hour Travel Lanes to Evaluate Safety Benefits in Response to Resident Requests

Responding to resident requests, the City of Madison Traffic Engineering Division will begin a test project on Tuesday, September 9 that removes peak-hour travel lanes on Williamson Street to evaluate safety benefits such as improved pedestrian crossings and reduced speeding. A test and data collection plan were developed by City staff after extensive public comments and discussions at the City’s Transportation Commission. Updated signage will be installed over the next several days, with all changes expected to be in place by midday Tuesday, when the test officially starts.

Traffic Pattern During Test Period

• Williamson Street will allow one lane of traffic in both directions, at all times
• On-street parking will remain available at all times on both sides of the street
• A new Thursday parking restriction will be implemented to allow for trash and recycling collection and other maintenance such as brush and leaf collection and street sweeping, which has typically been performed during the peak hour parking restrictions.
• Parking will be restricted further back from intersections to allow thru traffic to bypass left-turning vehicles during peak hours.

The goal of the test is to evaluate whether the peak-hour travel lanes are still needed along this corridor, and to address safety concerns during high-traffic periods such as difficult pedestrian crossings. The test is expected to run for approximately two months. During this time, Traffic Engineering staff will collect related traffic and safety data, including potential traffic volume and travel time changes on adjacent corridors, conduct field observations, and gather public input. The information collected will be used to help evaluate the benefits and impacts of the change.

The City of Madison needs your help to determine the overall preference for this section of Williamson Street.  Please add your preferences and feedback to the Williamson Street Safety Trial survey.  This important feedback will be used to make final determinations on the next steps for safety and lane configurations along this corridor.

Additional details and the public survey are available on the Williamson Street Safety Study website.