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23
Mar
Local taxpayers set to fund return of major cycling event
North Yorkshire looks set to host a stage of the Tour of Britain cycle race in 2026 and 2027 — at a cost of £750,000 to local taxpayers.
York and North Yorkshire Combined Authority, which is overseen by Labour mayor David Skaith, is expected on Friday (March 27) to agree a deal with British Cycling to bring the men’s race to the county.
The route for the 2026 event, which will be held from September 2 to 6, has yet to be agreed — but York has been ruled out because of the disruption it would cause in such a large urban area.
Andy Kerr, director of economy at the combined authority, said in a report British Cycling had approached the combined authority about hosting a stage of the event, which is broadcast in more than 100 countries and attracted 1.7 million global views last year.
He said:
Independent analysis commissioned by British Cycling evidenced economic impact of between £2 million and £12 million per stage for the local economy in 2025, meaning a considerable return on investment.
In 2026 it is proposed that we host a men’s stage due to timing. The women’s race will be held during August, the busiest time of the year for tourism and hospitality when the region already has very high levels of visitors, whereas the men’s race is in September when the peak season has passed. The other advantage is that the viewership for the men’s raise is higher, maximising the exposure for the region.
Mr Kerr says hosting the event “could be particularly attractive” next year because Britain is due to host stages of the Tour de France, as Yorkshire did in 2014 when the first stage ended in Harrogate, leading to an upsurge in interest in cycling.
The district embraced the 2014 Tour de France but was less supportive of the 2019 UCI Road World Championships, which was blighted by torrential rain and road closures in Harrogate town centre that damaged businesses. A fan zone on the Stray turned to mud and cost £130,000 to repair.
Mr Kerr’s report says British Cycling is open to route options, adding:
But there are a number of requirements for the latter including space for administration and a straight section of road. Stage finishes also include a circuit finish with a number of laps of the location. Given the topography of York and North Yorkshire they would be keen to ensure a hill stage. Any stage route will also need to be carefully considered to minimise the impact on the major road network and to avoid any road closures that require major cost or disruption.
The report says the combined authority would pay British Cycling £350,000 from its mayoral investment fund as a hosting fee.
A further £400,000 would be divided equally by the combined authority and North Yorkshire Council on administering the race, on issues such as road closures.
North Yorkshire hosted stages of the men’s Tour of Britain in 2022 and 2024. The 2022 route went from Redcar to Helmsley and the 2024 staged snaked through the North York Moors National Park and finished in Redcar. The opening stage of last year’s women’s Tour of Britain started in Dalby Forest and finished in Redcar.
None of those stages passed through the Harrogate district. But with this year’s race just over five months away, the route will have to be finalised soon.
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