Bike & Ped committee urges closing path gaps, e-bike ordinance and bridge naming

The Bike & Ped committee presented its FY27 priorities to South Burlington council May 4, urging the council to list key active-transportation projects among city priorities so voters can see progress ahead of a 2028 revote on path funding.

Committee members said major gaps remain in the path network and named the Spear Street path, the Songbird Road crosswalk and Dorset Street path as projects they want on the FY27 priority list. "We'd like to have something to show for it, something for the voters to really see," the committee said during the presentation.

The committee also emphasized the need to adopt an e-bike ordinance to support education and signage that staff plan to install. "We really felt like the ebike ordinance is important," one presenter said, noting that ordinance updates would back up the education and sign program. Committee members asked council to consider a naming policy and suggested a ceremonial name for the I‑89 East‑West bridge; committee members offered "Brightbridge" as an example.

Staff clarified that capital projects are included in the city’s annual CIP and that listing a project in policies and strategies gives it extra visibility and reporting priority, but that all CIP projects with funding are intended to move forward in the adopted fiscal year. Council discussed next steps for crosswalking the policies document with the CIP and city-plan goals for clearer annual reporting.