The first bikes rolled in at 7 a.m. and the camaraderie continued through the morning at the annual bike commuter breakfast in front of Newport City Hall on Friday, May 15, as the city marked National Bike to Work Day with coffee, snacks and swag from Bike Newport and RIPTA’s Commuter Resources.
Later in the afternoon, the celebration returned to the steps of City Hall, where Bike Newport Executive Director Bari Freeman introduced City Manager Colin Kennedy, who delivered the annual report on the city’s bicycle-friendly progress.
“We’ve had a really good year,” Kennedy said. “The City is now thinking about cyclists and pedestrians in the way we always should have been.”
Kennedy highlighted several accomplishments, including the renewal of Newport’s Bronze-level Bicycle Friendly Community status from the League of American Bicyclists, along with a guide outlining steps to advance to the next level. The Planning Department completed its first annual report on Green & Complete Streets project adherence, and the Newport Bicycle and Pedestrian Commission was credited with helping move several urgent initiatives forward.
In a regional award, Newport — together with Middletown and Portsmouth — received a $19.25 million Safe Streets for All implementation grant. Details of the grant are due to be announced by Rhode Island’s congressional delegation in Newport on Friday, May 22.
Kennedy also pointed to community engagement informing safe and connected bicycle and pedestrian infrastructure as part of Vision 2037, Newport’s new comprehensive plan currently in process, along with regional collaboration on e-bike education and bike parking improvements.
Freeman provided updates on upcoming bridge and rail corridor studies for bicycle and pedestrian access, highlighting the multi-modal and multi-municipal elements of the island’s developing transportation solutions. Chris Burich of Bike Newport updated attendees on the island-wide “Get There by Bike” initiative, which now involves more than a dozen local partners encouraging customers to arrive by bicycle.
The afternoon concluded with the naming of the 2026 Bicycle Friendly Business of the Year.
“This year, the selection was easy,” Freeman said in naming People’s Credit Union. “People’s is a community leader — helping to expand programs to reach more people, and is supporting their own staff and members to choose active healthy sustainable transportation and recreation.”
The credit union was recognized for its longstanding support of Bike Newport and its investment in bicycle-friendly initiatives, including support of Bike Newport’s Community Bike Garage, installation of bike racks at branch locations, support for community bike safety programming and its pursuit of Bicycle Friendly Business recognition through the League of American Bicyclists.
“It’s harder to bike here than it ever was when I was a kid,” said Sean Daly, head of People’s Credit Union. “This work is important to the community — helping kids learn to ride safely, getting fresh air, helping to make it easier to get around by bike. We really appreciate this award and are happy to contribute to this community effort.”
Freeman noted the partnership’s long history, reading a letter from May 2012 in which the board of the fledgling Bike Newport thanked People’s then-CEO Ellen Ford and her team for being one of the first businesses to support the organization in its first year.
“Fourteen years later, I am very happy to report that our partnership is alive, well, and thriving,” Freeman said.
The day ended with a group ride along Newport’s new shared use path to Newport Craft Brewing & Distilling.
Bike to Work Day 2026 was sponsored by Southcoast Health. The Bicycle Friendly award, a creatively repurposed bike wheel, is crafted each year by Newport artists Howard and Mary Newman, longtime bicycle enthusiasts and supporters of a bicycle-friendly future.
