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Warwickshire aims to boost cycle tourism - but campaigners want infrastructure

Tourism agency says hosting major races is boosting county's image as a destination for cycling...

Warwickshire hopes that staging high-profile cycling events will boost cycle tourism in the county – but local campaigners say money would be better spent on safer cycling routes.

The county has hosted stages of the Ovo Energy Women’s Tour and the Ovo Energy Tour of Britain during the past four years, and the Leamington Observer reports that Shakespeare’s England, the local business and tourism agency, wants to promote the area as a cycle tourism destination.

Shakespeare’s England chief executive, Helen Peters, told the newspaper that the national press, as well as specialist cycling publications, had emphasised the county’s attractiveness as a place for cycling following the events.

“We would certainly encourage businesses to target cycle groups,” she said, adding that “often it is as simple as offering or promoting facilities such as safe storage for bikes and suggesting routes and café stops.”

Jonathan Chilvers, a Green county councillor, welcomed the initiative, but said that money also needed to be spent on safe infrastructure.

“I’m delighted the council wants to encourage cycling tourism and grow our economy in this way,” he said.

“But if it’s serious it must invest in more safe, attractive off-road routes. People don’t want to spend leisure time cycling on dangerous clogged up roads.

“Well publicised off-road routes have been really successful in other parts of the UK and with our beautiful Warwickshire countryside there’s no reason it can’t work here too,” he added.

His call for investment in infrastructure was echoed by a spokesman for Stratford Cycle Forum, who said: “Cycling on the main country roads is not a pleasant experience and it’s quite normal to be close-passed by cars doing 60 mph and more.

“The local cycling routes map only really has two off-road routes – the Greenway and the canal towpath to Wilmcote. Cycling on the main routes through town is downright awful and can frequently be dangerous.”

Jeff Clarke, Warwickshire County Council’s transport spokesman, insisted however that the council is seeking funding to pay for planned cycle routes to link communities within the county.

“The main focus for investment at the current time is on expanding cycle networks within Warwickshire’s towns and on linking urban areas where the towns lie within easy cycling distance of each other on the basis that this approach has the greatest potential to increase levels of cycling,” he explained.

“The county council has Cycle Network Developments Plans for each of Warwickshire’s main urban areas with about 60 key cycle links identified as being required to serve existing and future residential areas and to complete the core local networks.”

He added: “The council is actively working to secure the funding required to deliver these cycle routes and is currently reviewing a number of funding proposals.”

Simon joined road.cc as news editor in 2009 and is now the site’s community editor, acting as a link between the team producing the content and our readers. A law and languages graduate, published translator and former retail analyst, he has reported on issues as diverse as cycling-related court cases, anti-doping investigations, the latest developments in the bike industry and the sport’s biggest races. Now back in London full-time after 15 years living in Oxford and Cambridge, he loves cycling along the Thames but misses having his former riding buddy, Elodie the miniature schnauzer, in the basket in front of him.

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Vlad the Impailer | 4 years ago
1 like

I also live and cycle in Warwickshire around Stratford.

Some of the lanes are rutted and potholed but the Council do the usual and just tar and chip layer over the top, in reality leaving the bad surface with just a new face.

The Lanes are narrow and as said above the bends are tight and you cant see whats coming sometimes.

The main offenders are now the Range Rover, LandRover Discovery followed by mulit makes of SUV who think that they own the County.

Its a shame but - the views are great and the rolling hills are a plenty with some nice sharp climbs on the edge of the Cotswolds.

It would be good for better traffic management on the main through routes like the A46 as its so busy trying to cross it in a car is bad, but on a bike...... never mind.

Just be mindful of hedge cutting times in Mar and Oct as they leave little hawthorn bits all over the road - puncture city.

Hope they do more about cycling outside of the towns as there are not much bus services in the sticks and Taxis cost so much more due to the distances they have to come to find you.

But - the roads cant be made wider and the number of cars on them are increasing as people discover short cuts through the lanes.

What is the answer - there isnt one till this Country accepts that it has a problem and the public transport system is not designed or able to solve the problems of car ownership.

In Towns you can get awayt with pool vehicles from Google or other such tech companies where your little electric bug arrives within minutes to whisk you away to your destination whilst you sit in the rear drinking champers etc.

But it wont solve the problems in the sticks.   When do you think we will see a battery powered Tractor which has to work for 14 hours a day getting in crops, let alone the combine harvester.

Military vehicles - dont think they will ever be electric, just imagine the farce there.

We need a better answer and I cant come up with one - unless we all gpo back top riding horses.... at least we will have good roses.

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ROOTminus1 | 4 years ago
2 likes

At the risk of being cynical, I grew up in Nuneaton, and this "report" is a microcosm of Warwickshire County Council mentality; not only is it all hot air, but they're not even wasting breath on anything outside of Warwick, Stratford and Leamington.

The countryside in the county is amazing, I used to ride Nuneaton to Stratford quite regularly  and barring a sketchy final section on the Warwick road, it mostly comprised of quaint sleepy lanes and villages...

[removes rose-tinted glasses]

...The upshot of roads like that is despite not having visibility of more than 60m or so to the next hedge-framed bend, when the inevitable porche or mercedes does come screaming along, you can hear them in enough time to scramble into the privet and hawthorn laden verge to avoid joining the badgers and foxes as red smears on the top-most strata of tar and chippings that snake their way from village to village.

Had I stayed in Warwickshire I could have enjoyed one of Sustrans' shining moments; NCN52 aka Weddington walk; a former railway line converted to shared use path that helpfully links Nuneaton to the A5 next to MIRA, and bookended with anti-motorbike barriers that also inhibit bicycles.

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peted76 | 4 years ago
3 likes

Whilst this is a positive piece of PR, it's simply hot air, until action is taken not just spoken about, it's not enough. I suspect this fluff has come about due to the apparent looming elections.. 

The recent news that they are finally sorting out the Rugby to Leamington offroad route (The Lias Line, old railway track which and has fallen into disrepair over the years) is good, but is not what the local area needs, it desperately needs the K2L (Kenilworth to Leamington) route sorting as it's a main trunk route for traffic and dangerous for riding on. That, of course, doesn't scratch the surface as far as cycling requirements in the area. Along one of the two main routes we have a lovely painted white line between Leamington and Warwick constantly littered with large pot holes and in the 'door zone' at multiple points..  a route which has seen many accidents.. to name just one.

If we look at cycling sports provision in the local area, there simply isn't any. BC recognises this and while meetings have been held in the area, it appears WDC is not taking them up on their offer of help. We currently have a parkland which has been consulted on for a few years now since a golf club couldn't make it work commercially, it's easily adaptable nay 'perfect' for some off road trails and with a large cycling community within the area would be ideally located for some sort of tarmac loop or track and make it really special, and yet in WDC's wisdom they have proposed three options for discussion, all consisting of yet more types of golf, some zip lines and a commercial cafe, despite the fact there are golf five courses within a 2mile radius, and for sure the council area ones are not used much, the only provision for cycling are a couple of short unconnected shared use paths through the woodland, it's a slap in the face for cyclists and families in the area.

We're very lucky in Warwickshire in that you can travel in pretty much any direction from any of the main towns and within five mins you're in rolling countryside, it could be a more popular cycling destination than it is. The 'car' infrastructure has been bursting at the seams for 20years here as the towns have grown but the infrastructure has stayed the same. 

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brooksby | 4 years ago
3 likes

Quote:

Tourism agency says hosting major races is boosting county's image as a destination for cycling...

Tourism agency says hosting major races is boosting county's image as a destination for a particular type of cycling...

FTFY 

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