Oaks & Spokes

Oaks and Spokes began as a grassroots movement in Raleigh, NC, founded by Kristy Jackson, a passionate advocate for safe and sustainable transportation. Her goal was simple: to get more people on bikes. With support from Raleigh’s cycling community, she organized rides, spoke before City Council, pushed for better biking infrastructure, and built momentum for change.

In 2013, Oaks and Spokes hosted its first bike festival, drawing over 1,200 participants and kicking off a tradition of annual Bike Month events. By 2016, the organization had officially become a 501c3 nonprofit, expanding its reach and helping secure Raleigh’s first protected bike lanes on West and Harrington Streets. In 2017, a group of volunteer bike mechanics affiliated with Oaks and Spokes formed the Raleigh Community Kickstand, a bike-donation and repair co-op help individuals with housing insecurity obtain and maintain reliable and independent transportation.

Growth continued, and in 2021, Oaks and Spokes hired its first staff member. That same year, the League of American Bicyclists named it “Club of the Year.” In 2022, the organization secured its first contract with Wake County to expand Safe Routes to School educational programming for school children. And in 2023, the Association for Commuter Transportation (ACT) honored the organization’s impact with their “Excellence in Advocacy” award.