Serving Calumet, Fond du Lac, Menominee, Outagamie, Shawano, Waupaca, and Winnebago counties.
East Central works with WisDOT, local governments and bicycle/pedestrian advocacy groups to develop and coordinate multi-modal trail systems and activities. Local trail segments are critical to providing linkages required for a regional system that serves the alternative transportation needs of the region’s communities and urbanized areas.
In 2012, the East Central Wisconsin Regional Planning Commission finalized its contract with the Wisconsin Department of Transportation to begin work on a bicycle and pedestrian plan for the Fox Cities and Oshkosh Urbanized Areas. Read more about the plan here.
High Cliff Connection Plan
East Central Wisconsin Regional Planning Commission (ECWRPC), in partnership with municipalities in the Fox Cities, completed a study for a new pedestrian / bicycle route along the northern edge of Lake Winnebago, linking communities to High Cliff State Park. The study considered accessibility, route types, land impacts, intersection crossings, amenities, and links to existing trail networks, to create connections that will serve a variety of users, such as walkers, cyclists, and others.
This project has been identified as a priority through a number of previous community planning efforts, and the study provides guidance on the route alignment, as well as design and strategies for funding and implementation. The study focuses on identifying a route that connects the Loop the Little Lake Trail, the City of Menasha, the Village of Harrison, and the Village of Sherwood along an east-west corridor to High Cliff State Park, with potential for building off of the existing Friendship Trail. As the study progresses, other spur connections and links to other surrounding communities will be identified as well.
HKGi, a planning and landscape architecture firm, was contracted to provide professional services as consultants for the study. The study began in August of 2021, was completed in September 2022, and was approved by the Commission in October 2022. Over the course of the study, this social pinpoint website was used to share information, register for events, and provide a way to gather input on the plan and planning process.
Economic Impact Study
The East Central Wisconsin bicycle and pedestrian infrastructure network is an extensive network of 622 miles of paved and unpaved off-road trails, bike lanes, and signed bike routes connecting neighborhoods throughout Calumet County, Fond du Lac County, Outagamie County, and Winnebago County. As part of East Central Wisconsin Regional Planning Commission’s bicycle and pedestrian planning, the Commission created The Appleton (Fox Cities) Transportation Management Area and Oshkosh Metropolitan Planning Organization Bicycle and Pedestrian Plan in 2014 and updated the plan in 2021.This plan acknowledges the existing networks in Calumet, Outagamie, and Winnebago counties and discusses how ECWRPC can facilitate the creation of additional miles of bicycle and pedestrian infrastructure and new facilities. The City of Fond du Lac created City of Fond du Lac Bike & Pedestrian Plan in 2013 and updated the plan in 2018. Similarly, this plan discusses the construction of existing and proposed facilities within the municipality. This report’s analysis focuses on the economic and societal impacts of the existing and proposed 1,633-mile network across the four-county study area.
Bicycle and Pedestrian Resources
Other Plans
ECWPRC is available to assist your community with collecting counts on your bicycling and walking facilities (e.g. bike lanes and sidewalks) or on your roadways to help you identify the appropriate locations for bicycling and walking facilities. Two types of counters are available: infrared counters are placed on a post/pole to count facility users as they pass by; tube counters are placed on the ground and are calibrated to count bicycles as they pass over the tubes. If you are interested in having the ECWRPC team place counters in your community, please fill out the form below. Counters are reserved on a first-come, first-serve basis.