2025-144

Resolution to Reduce Speed Limits to 20 Miles Per Hour
In All School Zones in the City of Newport

WHEREAS, the safety and well-being of Newport’s children, families, and school staff is a top priority for the City of Newport; and

WHEREAS, school zones are high-traffic areas during morning drop-offs and afternoon pick-ups, with children walking, biking, and crossing streets often during peak traffic times; and

WHEREAS, according to the Newport Transportation Master Plan (2016-2020), roadways in Newport, including around school buildings, experienced a notably high concentration of crashes during peak hours, with the geocoded crash data highlighting school zones as key hot spots; and

WHEREAS, the City’s recent “Safe Streets and Roads for All” action plan (analyzed from 2019 to 2023) further confirms these areas as persistent cluster zones for collisions involving pedestrians and children; and

WHEREAS, RIDOT reports statewide that speed is a contributing factor in over 45% of all traffic fatalities, with over 16 pedestrian deaths in Rhode Island in the most recent year; and

WHEREAS, national traffic safety research shows that pedestrians struck at 20 mph have nearly twice the survival chance compared to those struck at speeds of 30 mph or higher; and

WHEREAS, many cities across the country, including Providence, have already implemented 20 mph school zone speed limits

as part of Vision Zero and Safe Routes to School initiatives, with enforced speed-management cameras reducing average speeds by up to 8 mph during school commute hours; and

WHEREAS, Rhode Island state law allows municipalities to set lower speed limits in designated school zones for the protection of public health and safety; NOW, THEREFORE BE IT

RESOLVED, that the City Council of the City of Newport hereby directs the City Administration to: Establish a uniform 20 mph speed limit within 300 feet of all designated school zones in Newport (public, charter, and private K-12); AND BE IT FURTHER

RESOLVED, that the City Clerk shall forward this resolution to the Rhode Island Department of Transportation for any necessary coordination on state-maintained school-zone roadways.

ELLEN PINNOCK
STEPHANIE SMYTH
XAY KHAMSYVORAVONG
DAVID R. CARLIN III

IN COUNCIL
READ AND PASSED
AUGUST 13, 2025

LAURA C SWISTAK, CMC
CITY CLERK