Decision details

RESOLVED:

1.        That Surrey County Council continues to work with the event organiser to maximise the benefits to Surrey and mitigate any potential negative impacts of the shorter sportive/inspiration ride event scheduled for May 2021 (subject to the implications of the COVID pandemic and any associated restrictions).

2.        That Surrey County Council does not continue to host the original 100 mile-event closed road event in Surrey after 2021 but that the council will remain open-minded to and explore opportunities for smaller, less disruptive events (subject to the COVID pandemic and any associated restrictions) that might inspire cycling for everyday journeys, rather than events focussed primarily on sports cycling.

Reason for Decision:

There are reasonable arguments in favour of continuing to support the 100-mile closed road event such as inspiring more cycling, generating grants for sporting and recreation organisations in Surrey and raising money for national charities. However, these benefits are set against the strong concerns from many Surrey residents over the disruption and negative impact on local businesses and services from the event, and concerns over anti-social behaviour of a small minority of sports cyclists.

With these finely balanced arguments in mind, a better deal for Surrey residents was sought from the event organisers to ensure that the negative impacts of the event on local communities was sufficiently outweighed by the benefits to the wider community.  These efforts were led by the Leader, Cabinet Member and relevant senior officers, and specifically sought a financial contribution to provide thousands more children with cycle training across Surrey’s schools, but regrettably this commitment was not forthcoming from London Marathon Events.      

However, there are smaller events that could be hosted in the county that are less disruptive events and would build on the County Council’s existing services to inspire and enable more people to cycle for everyday journeys. This approach would more closely align with the Council’s corporate objectives, compared with longer events focused primarily on sports cycling.

[The decisions on this item can be called in by the Communities, Environment and Highways Select Committee]