A Summer of Cycling in the City

A London Councils Member briefing
June 2014
A Summer of Cycling in the City
London is preparing for a summer of major cycling events. The Tour de France arrives
in London on 7 July and the Ride London Festival event takes place on 9-10 August.
The Tour de France is the largest annual sporting event in the world and attracts 12
million spectators along the route. The Ride London festival weekend is one of the
largest mass-participation sports events worldwide and last year attracted 66,000
professional and amateur cyclists.
Overview
Major sports events bring substantial economic benefits to the host city, but also require
resources to manage road closures, security and cleansing services. These events help to
showcase the city and can also inspire residents to exercise more and adopt healthier lifestyles.
This briefing provides information on two major cycling events taking place in London this
summer, the Tour de France (7 July) and Ride London (9-10 August) and looks at how they may
support borough cycling, health and economic development policies.
Analysis
The Tour de France - Stage 3, Monday 7 July
In 2007, London hosted the Tour’s Grand Départ (stage 1) and seven years later, the Tour de
France comes back to the UK, with the first three stages:
• Stage 1 the Tour’s ‘Grand Départ’, on Saturday 5 July, will start in Leeds and finish in
Harrogate;
• Stage 2, on Sunday 6 July, will race from York to Sheffield;
• Stage 3, on Monday 7 July, starts in Cambridge, through Essex and travels through
north, east and central London, passing along the Thames and finishing late afternoon on The Mall at St James’s Park.
The UK stages of the 2014 Tour de France form part of UK Sport’s Gold Event Series which, building
on the legacy of London 2012, aims to bring 70 world class events to the country by 2019.
On Monday 7 July, the route will start in Cambridge City centre at around midday, going
through Cambridgeshire, then Essex before heading to Epping.
The route then reaches Greater London, where the world’s greatest cyclists will ride close
to Woodford Green, Chingford, Walthamstow and Snaresbrook before approaching central
London via, Leyton, Stratford, West Ham, Plaistow, Silvertown, Leamouth, Poplar, Wapping
and Shadwell.
Once past the Tower of London, the final kilometres of the route will take them along the
Thames on Lower and Upper Thames Streets and Victoria Embankment before riding past the
Houses of Parliament, around St James’s Park and finishing, with Buckingham Palace as a
backdrop, on The Mall in St James’s Park between 15:30 and16:00.
Ahead of the race, spectators will also be able to enjoy the Tour’s Publicity Caravan – a convoy
of 170+ vehicles which arrives two hours in advance of the cyclists, distributing promotional
items and merchandise.
Estimated arrival times for the Caravan and the fastest cyclists are:
Locations
Epping Forest (The Sprint)
Woodford
Walthamstow
Leyton
Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park
West Ham Lane
Tower of London
Embankment River
Westminster Bridge
Houses of Parliament
The Mall (The Finish)
Caravan
12:56
13:09
13:19
13:25
13:26
13:26
13:52
13:52
13:58
13:58
14:00
Race
14:43
14:55
15:04
15:09
15:11
15:11
15:35
15:35
15:40
15:40
15:42
Detailed maps of the route are available at tfl.gov.uk/tourdefrance
The roads on the route through north, east and central London will be closed from 10:00 and
for most of the day on Monday 7 July. Parking restrictions will also be in place and, while the
roads are closed it will not be possible for vehicles to cross the route. This will have a major
impact on road transport, including buses across the capital, and Tube and rail stations along
and around the route will be busier than usual. As long as it is safe to do so, all roads will be
reopened by 18:00. Walking or cycling will be the easiest way of getting around; however
Barclays Cycle Hire docking stations in and around the route area will also be suspended.
A map showing the affected areas inside the M25, with advice to drivers, public transport
users, cycle hire, freight and spectators is available at tfl.gov.uk/tourdefrance
Prudential Ride London, 9-10 August
The Prudential Ride London festival of cycling, sponsored by the Mayor of London and other
partners in London and Surrey, will take place on the weekend of 9-10 August 2014. The key
events are:
Saturday 9 August:
• Free cycle race: up to 50,000 cyclists of all ages and abilities will take part in a trafficfree route featuring many of the capital’s famous landmarks.
• Grand Prix: a professional women’s event and youth races will take place on a circuit
around St James’s Park.
Sunday 10 August:
• Prudential Ride London-Surrey 100: up to 24,000 amateur cyclists will follow a 100mile route on closed roads through the capital and Surrey. The event will start at Queen
Elizabeth Olympic Park, travelling out of the capital into Surrey’s countryside before
returning to London for a finish on The Mall.
• Ride London-Surrey Classic: 150 of the world’s best professional men’s cyclists will ride
along an extended 200km version of the amateur route.
Roads on the event routes will be closed from the early hours of the morning of Saturday 9
August and again on Sunday 10 August. Roads will reopen as soon as it is safe to do so that
day. Bus diversions and parking restrictions will also be required on the event routes across
both days.
More detailed information, including a map, will be available on the Prudential Ride London
website.
Many other major cycling races will be taking place in London this summer, including London
bikeathon (31 August) several London to Brighton bike rides, and many others sportive and
charity rides starting or finishing in London.
Commentary
The Tour de France and the Prudential Ride London race are great news for London and its
economy as, once again, the city will welcome visitors from around the world and the nation
to experience first-hand two major sports events.
These events will see huge numbers of people lining the streets to see some of the greatest
names in cycle racing. While the routes feature many of the capital’s famous landmarks in
central London, this will be an opportunity to bring people and activities in local high streets
along the routes. Sporting and leisure events such as these are critical to the local economic
vitality of London’s high streets and town centres. As traditional retailing has decreased
(increasingly moving online) boroughs have had to find innovative ways to diversify what
is on offer on their local high streets. Experiences such as these cycle races will ensure that
London’s residents continue to recognise their high streets as diverse, vibrant centres.
At the same time, London is experiencing a rise in the number of people cycling to work
and for recreational purposes. A recent report by the World Health Organization (WHO) has
quantified the benefits of investing in green and healthy transport for economic profitability,
job creation and public health. The report states that if London achieved the same modal
share of cycling as Copenhagen (26 per cent), it would save more than 500 lives annually and
create 8,000 additional jobs.
The hope is that the successes in major cycling competitions such as the Tour which saw the
first two consecutive British wins in 2012 and 2013 (Sir Bradley Wiggins and Chris Froome
respectively) will inspire young and older generations to practice more sport and adopt
healthier lifestyles.
Those boroughs which will see the races going through their local areas this summer, may want
to consider how to capitalise these events to benefit their cycling and economic development
policies. However, to optimise the full potential impact of these events, national government,
the Mayor and London boroughs will have to play their part to support safer cycling and
promote healthier lifestyles.
Author: Jorgina Cuixart, Principal Policy and Project Officer (T: 020 7934 9829)
Click here to send a comment or query to the author
Links:
Le Tour Stage 3 website
TfL Tour de France website
Prudential Ride London website
WHO report: Unlocking new opportunities: jobs in green and healthy transport
Walking and Cycling In London - What Residents Think
Streets Ahead - putting high streets at the heart of local economic growth
This member briefing has been circulated to:
Portfolio holders and those members who requested policy briefings in the following
categories: Transport, Economic Development, Health
London Councils, 591/2 Southwark Street, London SE1 0AL www.londoncouncils.gov.uk