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Madison police report two second‑quarter traffic fatalities, grant funding adjustments and high speeds in enforcement stops
Summary
The Madison Police Department reported two traffic fatalities in the city's second quarter and described grant funding changes and enforcement results, including recorded speeds well above posted limits during targeted operations.
Madison Police reported two traffic fatalities in the second quarter of 2025 and described changes in federal grant funding that affected enforcement deployments during the period.
Lt. Hannah presented the department’s second‑quarter traffic report to the Transportation Commission on Aug. 13. The two fatal crashes included a May intersection crash on Northport Drive at Kennedy Road — a motor vehicle‑pedestrian collision later shown on apartment video to be a red‑light violation by the driver — and a fatal motorcycle crash on the Beltline in which the rider was ejected after what the department described as an aggressive lane change and road‑rage incident. Both crashes occurred on dry, clear days.
Lt. Hannah said the Northport crash involved a driver who initially told officers he had a green light, but video showed the driver ran a red light while the pedestrian had a walk signal. Testing showed the driver was over the legal blood‑alcohol limit. The department said the motorcycle rider was pronounced deceased at the hospital.
The report also described uncertainty in federal grant funding in early 2025: the Wisconsin DOT temporarily reduced several grant awards the department planned to use for speed and seat‑belt enforcement and for pedestrian and bicycle enforcement, then reinstated funding for the speed and seat‑belt programs on June 1 but not the Pedestrian/Bicycle grant. Lt. Hannah said the department ran fewer enforcement deployments in the second quarter while the funding was uncertain but planned additional grant activity to expend available dollars before the grant year ends.
Enforcement statistics highlighted very high speeds observed during some operations: officers recorded drivers traveling at 101–105 mph in targeted enforcement operations on corridors such as the Beltline and Stoughton Road, and speeds of 46 mph on a 25‑mph segment of East Washington Avenue. "We get a lot of good feedback on some of these grants... Neighbors come out to just tell us how grateful they are that the officers are over there," Lt. Hannah said, while noting the prevalence of extreme speeding.
Commissioners discussed thresholds for traffic stops and automated enforcement. Lt. Hannah said officers typically focus on the most egregious speeding and that enforcement thresholds consider perception and the likelihood of judicial acceptance; automated approaches and thresholds are subject to program design and public buy‑in.
The department asked the commission to note the trends and to support targeted enforcement as resources allow. The commission did not take formal action on the report.
