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Will Tour of Britain put Scotland on the cycling holiday map?Scottish bike path Edinburgh Image by Flickr user psd

Will Tour of Britain put Scotland on the cycling holiday map?

Tourism bosses hope for eceonomy boost as Tour of Britain goes north of the border
by Sarah Barth
Sat, Sep 12, 2015 09:46
8

Scotland is anticipating a boom in cyclist numbers after the Tour of Britain crossed the border this week, highlighting the cycling routes of the region.

Featuring  Dumfries and Galloway, Kelso, Holyrood Park, East Lothian and the Borders, the Tour route was designed to inspire amateur cyclists to discover more of Scotland.

VisitScotland estimates that road cycling and mountain biking trips by domestic visitors over the last three years have already contributed on average £114m to the Scottish economy.

Road cyclists have made more than 284,000 trips, and mountain bikers 191,000 across the country. It is also estimated that visitors stayed more than two million nights and spent £123m.

VisitScotland said a survey conducted after the last visit of the Tour in 2013 found 70% of spectators were "inspired to cycle more regularly”.

VisitScotland chairman Mike Cantlay said: "The Aviva Tour of Britain is a high profile, prestigious event and I hope the accompanying footage will inspire even more visitors to get on their bike saddles and explore the breathtaking landscapes of Scotland either by road, mountain, path or trail.

"With continued popularity in cycling tourism there is a huge opportunity for the Scottish and local economies.

"From cycling tours around the incredible Highlands to mountain biking in the Scottish Borders and Dumfries and Galloway, hotels, restaurants and accommodation providers are amongst those businesses which can capitalise from this year-long leisure pursuit."

VisitScotland
Tourism
Scotland
2015 tour of britain

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8 comments

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matheson | 8 years ago
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If the ToB is going to remain then why can't they alternate between the four UK capitals for the finish each year? The West of Scotland - like Wales - has some great routes, and some testing hills.
Although obviously not all pros like hills... 29

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HalfWheeler replied to matheson | 8 years ago
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matheson wrote:

If the ToB is going to remain then why can't they alternate between the four UK capitals for the finish each year? The West of Scotland - like Wales - has some great routes, and some testing hills.
Although obviously not all pros like hills... 29

In a way London gets slightly short changed by the ToB. Yes they get a stage each year but it's only a criterium. The main business of the race has been done hundreds of miles away.

To be fair to the organisers there are logistical issues for the race not visiting certain parts of the country more often; traffic management, transfers, proximity of crowds etc. I'd love to see the ToB in or around Glasgow but that either requires a long transfer (unpopular with the riders) or spending quite a bit of time in various stages in the north of England and south of Scotland (which in turn would omit quite a lot of the UK).

To me the ideal would be the present ToB visiting Scotland with much the same regularity as it does now but a new 3 or 4 day Tour of Scotland being organised showcasing the country.

There are literally hundreds of UCI Europe level races run each year. Only three of them are in the UK. For an up and coming cycling nation we need more.

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a_to_the_j | 8 years ago
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as a commuter in many areas of scotland over the years i have seen next nothing in real decent cycling spend on proper cycling lanes, bike lockers, bus with bike racks, spaces on trains, for the A2B cyclists and local cyclists
as , probably like most of the UK, the roads are a potholed, gravel-based tarmac mess, but what is worst for most of scottish larger towns and cities is longer commuters are almost impossible - forced off the main A roads by fast comuting traffic we have to wiggle our way round back ungritted , unlit roads with only the lovely NCN route markers to see as the "xx millions spent" by the councils/governments...
the only spend has been on tourist routes and trying to encourage tourism to scotland.
if scotland is serious about getting more cyclists and also in meeting its own target - sorry its not a target now, its been labelled an ambition, of (just) 10% of all journeys by bike by 2020 it got to do more than it is
all that happens with these Races, Grand Tours etc is people get excited and want to ride, but then put off by how dangerous and unwelcoming it really is to ride in scotland, day 2 day, a 2 b.

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KnightBiker | 8 years ago
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Tour of Britain is not the tour of England, as such Scotland should be included regularly.
The race should be lengthened to 9 days, become World Tour (and replace an existing race like the tour of Normandie or Dauphine)
To get the best changes of growth and exposure the race can best be owned by the ASO. The place of on the calendar is now late and overlaps with too many other races, while the race can serve the local UK need with the current format international attention for england and scotland will be better in a format leading up to the tour de france.

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60kg lean keen ... replied to KnightBiker | 8 years ago
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KnightBiker wrote:

Tour of Britain is not the tour of England, as such Scotland should be included regularly.
The race should be lengthened to 9 days, become World Tour (and replace an existing race like the tour of Normandie or Dauphine)
To get the best changes of growth and exposure the race can best be owned by the ASO. The place of on the calendar is now late and overlaps with too many other races, while the race can serve the local UK need with the current format international attention for england and scotland will be better in a format leading up to the tour de france.

totally agree but don't forget Wales and Cornwall, bring it on, the Uk has the full menu be it mountain and moor - rolling green lanes - open costal roads ect finding a better date and upping it rankings would really put us on the map.

Avatar
HalfWheeler replied to KnightBiker | 8 years ago
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KnightBiker wrote:

Tour of Britain is not the tour of England, as such Scotland should be included regularly.

I'd like to see the ToB up here every year. Sometimes it doesn't happen but that's life. I'm sure there's years that the TdF doesn't visit Normandy, Provence etc. It doesn't make it any less a TdF.

The UK needs more UCI Europe level races other than the ToB. At last we have the Ride Surrey and Tour De York'. A three (or even four) day Tour Of Scotland would compliment the UK calendar nicely.

It would have to be in June though. Statistically there's far less blizzards and hurricanes during that month.

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HalfWheeler | 8 years ago
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A UCI Tour of Scotland, along the lines of the Tour de Yorkshire, would help enormously.

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Jacobi replied to HalfWheeler | 8 years ago
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Totally agree, HalfWheeler.

Visit Scotland get £millions in funding from the Scottish Government. I'm sure, if they offered to put up the prize money for a UCI organised Tour of Scotland event something could be arranged. If it encourages more cyclists to come here, the financial returns to the economy would far outweigh any expenditure.

Also; If a survey conducted after the last visit of the Tour in 2013 found that 70% of spectators were "inspired to cycle more regularly” it would also encourage more people to get off their backsides and onto their bikes - A tour with the potential to have major health benefits for the people. Maybe time for Visit Scotland to get a bit more proactive.

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