About Our City

Fitchburg is a six-mile-square city of more than 36,000 residents in south central Wisconsin. The southern neighbor of the capital city of Madison, Fitchburg was a town before incorporating in 1983, and so is one-third urban and suburban, and two-thirds rolling glacial farmland and natural areas. The city is blessed with three state trails and three mountain bike parks, and has developed a dense bicycle transportation network of scenic rural roads, off-road paths, bicycle lanes, and quiet neighborhood streets. Fitchburg’s commitment to bicycling and walking is described in its Bicycle and Pedestrian Plan, adopted in 2026.

About Fitchburg's Bike Paths

The Fitchburg Historical Society asked City Planner Emeritus Tom Hovel to document the history of Fitchburg's extensive system of multi-use paths. Read here about how the thoughtful planning and patient investment over many decades led to the trails we enjoy today!

A Destination for Bicycling

• The League of American Bicyclists Bicycle Friendly America Program:
Fitchburg was rated a Silver Bicycle Friendly Community 2015-2027 (see press release here) and as a Bronze Bicycle Friendly Community 2012-2015.

The Bike League also rates businesses and other organizations. Fitchburg has thirty-six (36) Bicycle Friendly Businesses, the most of any community in the Midwest and sixth in the nation. For more information on BFB awards in Fitchburg, including a complete list, and to learn how your business or non-profit can be recognized as a Bicycle Friendly Business, see our Bicycle Friendly Business page.


• The peopleforbikes' Annual City Ratings:
In 2026, Fitchburg's City Rating increased to 62 under a new rating system and a switch from 2010 to 2020 census data. The significant increase was due to both improvements in the city's bike infrastructure and increased population and destinations in its most bikeable areas, notwithstanding stricter standards on what constitutes "low stress" bike infrastructure. Fitchburg's score was at the 92nd percentile of all cities rated, up from the 82nd percentile in 2025.

Under the old rating system, Fitchburg's City Rating was 47 in 2025 and 2024, up from 40 in 2023. (The 2023 score was the first after Fitchburg attached a portion of the Town of Madison.) The City Rating measures the completeness of the low-stress bicycle network. A score of 100 means that every destination is reachable from every nearby residential address over low-stress bicycle facilities. A score of 50 is the threshold score for becoming a great place to bike. PeopleforBikes announces City Ratings each year in June.


• Fitchburg was designated a "Wisconsin Active Together Community"by healthTIDE on January 10, 2019. as part of its Active Wisconsin program. Fitchburg continues as an active member of Active Wisconsin, now a program of 1000 Friends of Wisconsin.