Bike to work – for yourself and the planet

May is National Bike Month, sponsored by the League of American Bicyclists, celebrating cycling as a healthy, sustainable mode of transportation and recreation. Along with other focuses during the month, this week (May 11-17) is Bike to Work Week, during which commuters are encouraged to swap cars for bikes, offering health, financial, and environmental benefits. With the warmer and longer days of spring, it’s a perfect time to think about making cycling part of your daily commute.

Greater Newburyport is ideal for traveling by bike. Our area’s gentle topography, beautiful natural environment, and historic surroundings make cycling easy and enjoyable. The Coastal Trails network provides a safe and attractive off-road spine connecting neighborhoods, downtowns, business areas, and transit nodes. Distances between key destinations are well within a comfortable cycling range for most cyclists.

Within Newburyport, low-traffic neighborhood streets combine with marked (and sometimes signalized) crossings of major roads to support safe bike riding to most local destinations. For many rides, the Clipper City Rail Trail provides a completely off-road, multi-user route connecting the downtown, several neighborhoods, the MBTA Commuter Rail station, and MEVA’s bus service. The rail trail is very well used, as documented by the “Valley Tally” trail counters deployed at six locations around the circuit.

With these resources, biking to work can be a meaningful option for many residents. For those who live and work in Newburyport, a bike commute will take less than a half hour. Those who commute by train or bus can often cycle to the transit stop more quickly than it takes to drive, park and walk to the stop.

This year, Newburyport has another option for biking to work – the Port Bikeshare system, with 25 bikes located at 5 stations along the Clipper City Rail Trail. Port Bikeshare makes it possible for those without their own bikes (or who would rather not leave their bikes out all day) to cycle from home to downtown or to the MBTA station as part of their commute. Plans are underway to add more bikes and locations later this year, making the program accessible to more residents and destinations.

The cost to use a Port Bikeshare bike is only $3 for up to 30 minutes – more than enough for any commuting ride in the city. If you use Port Bikeshare regularly, you can lower the cost of each ride by getting a $30 monthly membership that gives you unlimited 30-minute rentals for a month. That means that after only 5 round trips, every additional ride is free. Compared to the $4 cost to park a car at the MBTA station, using a bike as part of your daily commute can make financial sense.

Cycling is great for the environment. Both the Clipper City Rail Trail and the Port Bikeshare program were funded in large part by the federal Congestion Mitigation and Air Quality (CMAQ) grant program, because making it easy for people to shift their mode of transportation from cars to walking and cycling results in less air pollution. Bicycles are also quieter than cars, resulting in less noise pollution.

Finally, incorporating active transportation like walking and cycling into the daily routine is good for your health. Cycling is a highly effective, low-impact exercise that improves cardiovascular health, builds muscular strength, boosts mental well-being, and aids in weight management. It strengthens legs, reduces stress, and lowers the risk of diseases like stroke, heart attack, and type 2 diabetes. It is suitable for all fitness levels and ages.

Not everyone can switch to cycling for all or part of their daily commutes. The combination of sprawl development and an incomplete public transportation system means that many people must drive to get to where they need to be. But those who can make the switch can save money, gain personal health benefits, and help save the environment – not to mention beginning and ending the day with a joyful ride!

Rick Taintor is the president of Newburyport Livable Streets and may be contacted at rtaintor@gmail.com. To learn more about Port Bikeshare go to https://bit.ly/portbikeshare.

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This Educational column was originally published by The Daily News of Newburyport on May 15, 2026.