🚌 Bus ridership numbers are off the charts

🚌 Bus Ridership Way up Thanks to BRT

• Madison transit officials say that 1.3 million rides were taken on Metro Transit last month. That’s the highest April ridership in nearly a decade, and the highest month overall since before the pandemic.
• The high numbers are a direct result of the Bus Rapid Transit rollout last fall and a streamlined fare payment system, Metro Transit officials said. Ridership on Metro’s Rapid Route A is up 56% this month compared to last year, and ridership on Rapid Route B has more than doubled from the same period in 2024. [City of Madison, 🎧 City Cast Madison]

🚢 The Bounty Regatta & Fish Boil Set for June 1

• One of the most Madison events of the summer is the annual Regatta & Fish Boil put on by The Bounty, the vintage shop and art space on South Park Street. On June 1, over 20 artists will design little boats and race them down rain gutters.
• Since everyone’s in a seafaring mood, chef Kyle Kiepert (of Don’t Cook for Cowboys fame) will cook up a fish boil. Tickets are $45 to benefit the Clean Lakes Alliance and the Friends of Monona Bay.
• 🎧 Dig deeper: On the City Cast Madison podcast today, store owner J Henley talks about what makes The Bounty and its regatta so darn special. [The Bounty, Madison Minutes, 🎧 City Cast Madison]

🚓 Sheriff Buys $12,000 Remote Controlled Surveillance Car

• A new addition to the Dane County Sheriff’s vehicle fleet will have enhanced audio and visual recording equipment and a frame made of aviation-grade carbon fiber and reinforced polycarbonate. It’s also about the size of a Tonka truck.
• The department received a $12,000 grant from Wisconsin Emergency Management and the state Department of Military Affairs to purchase the small remote controlled vehicle. It will be used by the Tactical Response Team, allowing deputies to see inside buildings without having to physically enter. [Cap Times]

If you still have a book checked out from when the Madison Public Library first opened, you might have racked up some serious late fees by now.

The library is celebrating its 150th birthday this month, dating back to when the first location opened in 1875. Since then, Madison Public Library has expanded to nine locations (plus a mobile Dream Bus and online), offering all kinds of resources to library card holders.

On the City Cast Madison podcast this Friday, we’ll be joined by library marketing manager Liz Boyd to talk about all the library has planned to celebrate. In the meantime, here’s a look back at the Madison Public Library’s long history.

1875 - The first Madison public library was a collection of 5,000 books housed at City Hall. Only men above the age of 15 could access the library.

1902 - Children’s services, including a storytime, began when what was then called the Madison Free Library hired its first professionally trained librarian Bertha Brown, who converted a workroom into a Children’s Reading Room

1906 – The library moved out of City Hall after a donation from Andrew Carnegie financed a building at the corner of Carroll and Dayton streets. It was occupied, including a school for librarians, until the Central Library was built in 1965.

1911 – The library began partnering with local schools to provide books and staff to Madison high schools. The program expanded to all grades, and the new school library system became a model for schools across the country.

1913 – The Carnegie Foundation again financed Madison’s first neighborhood library, Hawthorne Library at 1249 Williamson St.

1941 – The library became one of the first organizations in the city to celebrate what was then called Negro History Week, inviting Black speakers and created book lists of Black authors of the time.

⬆️ Last Week’s Photo

Did you know where this public art was located? They can be found along the roundabout underneath Verona Road!

🎉 This was a toughie! Congratulations to Cathy M., Vicki A., and Annie L. for being the first three to guess right!

⬇️ This Week’s Photo

Where is this located? A few clues:

• It’s on Madison’s East Side
• It’s called “Blue Lantern on Tripod” by the legendary artist Sid Boyum
• The sculpture is located almost exactly between two previous “Where Is It?” entries, a retro diner and another Sid Boyum sculpture!