Madison's Everyday Engineering

You see the red lights flashing in your rear view mirror. The sounds of sirens grow louder and you pull over to the side. Chances are you’ve likely gotten out of the way for a fire truck at some point. But now, there may be a new vehicle rushing by, especially in the City of Madison: the City’s and Nation’s first all-electric municipal fire truck, the Striker Volterra. In this podcast episode you...

Have you heard what all the buzz is all about? The City of Madison is a Bee City USA and it’s busy season for our black and yellow pollinator friends! Our Engineering Division Crews are also busy tending to the pollinators and sharing why its important to support the pollinator habitat. Engineering Division Public Information Officer Hannah Mohelnitzky hosts the Engineering Division Greenway Veget...

Having a green, lush, lawn makes for a beautiful visual, but at what cost? Some people use fertilizers, others use different means to make the perfect lawn cushy and vibrant. City of Madison Engineering Division Public Information Officer Hannah Mohelnitzky hosts City of Madison Engineering Division Engineer Phil Gaebler and Engineering Division Greenway Vegestation Coordinator Maddie Dumas to tal...

Anyone who is riding, driving or commuting in some form in the City of Madison is already impacted by Vision Zero. Vision Zero is a strategy to eliminate all traffic fatalities and severe injuries while increasing safe, healthy, equitable mobility for all. Is it possible to lower speed limits to 25 miles per hour, and have everyone abide by it? That question is answered in this podcast as City of...

A lot of residents want the feeling of soft water, the silky-hair-out-of-the-shower-feeling, which is possible with salt. However, have you ever thought of how much damage you’re doing thanks to the amount of salt you’re putting into your water softener? It’s a question City of Madison Engineering Public Information Officer Hannah Mohelnitzky asks to Water Resource Engineer Phil Gaebler and Wiscon...

A Town of Madison and City of Madison have existed for quite some time separately, however, come October 2022 the City of Madison and City of Fitchburg will absorb the Town of Madison. This process is called attachment, and in a nutshell, means some major changes for the roughly 6,300 people living within the Town of Madison boundaries, which is about 3.9 square miles of land. As part of an aggres...

A pandemic, Wisconsin winter, growing need and a tight deadline: all things standing in the way as Engineering crews work as fast as they can to put together a temporary homeless shelter for men in need in our community. City agencies pulled together in December 2020 to open a temporary homeless shelter in the City’s former Fleet services building located at North First Street in Madison, Wis. Thi...

Operating a backhoe, designing a street, wiring an entire floor of lighting or designing a building: they’re all jobs in the trades and construction industry. These positions are also historically, held by men, however, the industry is changing and the number of women in the construction industry is increasing thanks to some of the pioneers who blazed the trail for other women, and also men helpin...

A bike path with ice and snow is no good to ride on, unless you have the right equipment or if Engineering crews make a pass through, which is the case even if on weekends and holidays. The City of Madison Engineering Division works with the Parks Division to make sure bike paths are clear in the City of Madison. The city also has a very active bike community, and once the snow falls, Engineering...

For municipalities to operate efficiently, the Fleet Service Division is often the backbone that keeps the fire department trucks tuned up, police cars up to date with oil changes and engineering’s dump truck tires filled with air. However, the work of Fleet means so much more, especially to the mechanics and team doing the hard work. At the City of Madison, a brand new fleet building was built, a...

When we hear the term “Soil Amendments,” the first thought that comes to mind may not be an easy fix in the front yard. However, in this podcast episode, engineers explain simply how not only are soil amendments easy to do in your yard, but they have huge impacts to helping mitigate flooding if that’s an issue for your neighborhood. City of Madison Engineering Division Public Information Officer H...

Solar is at the center of conversation around the world, no matter if you’re a homeowner, developer, engineer or installer. GreenPower is a program at the City of Madison where trainees who have little to no electrical experience learn how to install solar, which then helps the City reach its sustainability goals. In this episode, City of Madison Engineering Division Public Information Officer Han...

Pumpkin spice lattes, patches, candles, carving, when it’s fall, pumpkin is everywhere! However, when the pumpkins are sitting on your front porch rotting after a busy pumpkin season, you could do something more purposeful when it comes to parting from your pumpkins or other yard waste. City of Madison Engineering Division Public Information Officer Hannah Mohelnitzky hosts Engineering’s Greenway...

You’ve heard the buzz word, but what does it actually mean? Green Infrastructure: rain gardens, permeable pavement, green roofs, you name it. It’s infrastructure that works with the environment, and in our case, here in Madison, a forward thinking way of approaching stormwater and flood management. City of Madison Public Information Officer Hannah Mohelnitzky hosts engineers Phil Gaebler and Jojo...

Rain gardens, they’re green, beautiful and help our infrastructure, but if you’ve never built one, have one or even know of how to make it happen in your yard, it can be hard to understand the benefits. A rain garden is a garden of native shrubs, perennials, and flowers planted in a small depression, which, sometimes, is built on a natural slope. A rain garden is also a great option for stormwater...

A green roof, or living roof, is a roof a building that is partially or completely covered with vegetation and a growing medium. Plants on the roof or garden on the roof, if you picture it in your head, not only looks cool but it has a number of benefits to the environment and also stormwater mitigation. In this episode, listen in to City of Madison Engineering Division Public Information Officer...

A lot of communities have their own version of a public market: complete with diverse food, vendors and experiences to fill the space with life for the community. The Madison Public Market will be no different, and it’s moving closer and closer with each day and benchmark in the design process. In this episode, hear from the people pushing the project along, and have been key stakeholders in makin...

Libraries have been part of Madison for quite some time, including one of nine locations, getting a major upgrade on the City’s east side: Pinney Library. The new location is designed with state-of-the-art facilities, designs, colors focusing on accessibility, sustainability and productivity for anyone who visits and plans to use the new resource. In this episode, City of Madison Engineering Divis...

Flooding impacts last years after devastation, and so does the work to look at ways to provide possible solutions so flooding doesn’t reoccur. Knowing how the watershed works as a whole and sharing every step toward finding solutions is the core of the City Engineering Division’s Watershed studies. It takes time, but to improve storm water infrastructure correctly, time will allow engineers to do...

The first thing that comes to mind when you hear the word “engineering” may be something related to building, designing or constructing, which is all correct. However, designing isn’t just about materials, it’s about how people will use the space for functionality, which then contributes to the overall quality of experience in the building. While the first lactation room was added years ago, even...

Anytime Wisconsinites see a snowy forecast, they know, travel is typically not advised, and planning begins until the roads are cleared of snow and ice. However, there’s a lot more planning that happens from the City’s perspective far before the snow starts to fall. In this episode, listen to City of Madison Streets Division’s Steve Schultz and Engineering Division’s Phil Gaebler on how City crews...

PFAS, or perflourinated compounds, are a class of chemicals widely used in cookware, food packaging, stain and water-resistant clothing, upholstery and firefighting foams. The compounds do not degrade and are showing up in dust, soil and water worldwide. It’s a busy conversation for a number of people across the nation, and more specifically and locally here in Madison, it’s captivated and necessi...

Once the water from your faucet or soggy noodles from dinner go down the drain, it’s just the beginning of a major process that many of us take for granted. One of the biggest misconceptions about drains is you can put anything down it, as long as it melts or you chase whatever you put down the drain with soap. If it never makes it through the pipe, chances are, you’ll have some major issues that...

Keeping leaves at bay during the fall is important for any property owner, even when the work is dreaded. From City crews cleaning up leaves to you clearing them out of your gutters, the leaves require some attention otherwise it could impact your wallet in the long run. In this episode, Engineer Jojo O’Brien and Streets Division Public Information Officer and Recycling Coordinator Bryan Johnson t...

Riding the bus in Madison has changed over the years, however one thing has not: city agencies working together to make sure Madison residents and visitors can get from point A to point B, without hassle. In 2018, Metro provided 13 million rides, and on any given day, it provides up to 60,000 rides a day. With Metro Transit and the City of Madison looking forward to its newly announced Bus Rapid T...