Biking in Portage County, Wisconsin — traffic stress map and safe routes

4,596miles of roads & paths scored

55%low-stress (LTS 1–2), comfortable for most people

147bike/ped crashes on record (2021–2025) · 25 fatal or serious

499separate low-stress areas carved by busy roads

The stress picture

LTS 1
27%

LTS 2
28%

LTS 3
1%

LTS 4
39%

LTS 5
4%

LTS 1 is calm enough for most children; LTS 2 suits most adults; LTS 3 takes a confident rider; LTS 4–5 are high-stress roads most people won't bike.

Honest limits: these scores come from mapped data, which can be incomplete or out of date; low crash counts do not mean a road is safe. Read the full methodology (PDF).

Local planning worth knowing in Portage County

Bike Safe Wisconsin is a statewide screening model: one consistent method applied to every public road in all 72 counties, refreshed from statewide data. Local and regional agencies plan at a finer grain — with field review, local traffic counts, adopted project lists, and public input that no statewide model can replicate — and where that work exists, it deserves recognition and the first look:

WisDOT county bicycle maps — printable suitability-rated bicycling map for every Wisconsin county (2020 update)

The two are complements: this site offers a consistent statewide baseline, a free route planner, and a second, independent lens; adopted local plans carry the detailed, community-endorsed recommendations. Know a local plan or study that belongs here? Tell us and we'll add it.

Plan a low-stress ride in Portage County

Pick two places — home to school, house to park — and compare the safest, balanced, and most direct options, with hill avoidance and clear warnings where you must cross a busy road. Free, no account needed. Trips you log become the evidence your community can use to make streets safer.

Plan a route in Portage County