Agenda item

1.         Cabinet agrees to host the Prudential Ride London-Surrey 100 and Classic across same route as in 2015 for the 2018 and 2019 events. (Note: the agreement is in place for 2016 and 2017)

2.         Subject to the event continuing to be fully supported by the Mayor of London, the request from London/Surrey Cycle Partnership (the event organiser) for them to establish new route for a 46 mile event for 2016, be approved in principle.

3.         That authority be delegated to the Strategic Director for Environment and Infrastructure, in consultation with the Cabinet Member for Localities and Community Wellbeing and the Cabinet Member for Highways, Transport and Flooding to agree any changes that may be required prior to the 2018 and 2019 events taking place.

Reasons for Decisions:

Recommendation 1 – The recommendation has been made to allow for the detailed plan for the 2018 and 2019 events to be started, the map of the route for the London-Surrey 100 and Classic is attached to the submitted report as Annex 1.

The event has received good feedback from those who were surveyed on the event day and has received national and international awards. Concerns remain as to the impact of the event on communities on the route particularly in the Leith Hill area that the event organiser will continue to address.

Recommendation 2 – As a response to the Cabinet Member’s direction to ensure that where possible roads are reopened as early as possible, the event organiser has put forward the proposal of the 46 mile route.

The benefits of the proposal are seen as:

·         Allowing the earlier road reopening on the western section of the route

·         The shorter route is likely to support the strategic objective of encouraging new cyclists to take part in the event

·         The shorter route is aimed at opening the event to new demographic groups who would be more likely to take part in the shorter event

The detailed proposal document is attached to the submitted report as Annex 2. 

Recommendation 3 - The delegation will ensure that there is continued strategic and elected Member oversight of the event arrangements during the detailed planning phases of the event plan and that changes can be made to the event arrangements in a proactive manner to ensure the needs of residents, participants and spectators continue to be met.

[The decisions on this item can be called in by the Resident Experience Scrutiny Board]

The Cabinet Member for Localities and Community Wellbeing informed Members of the Cabinet that the purpose of this report was to agree to allow the Prudential Ride London Surrey events to continue and to approve the introduction of a new 46 mile route.

He explained that the Prudential Ride London-Surrey 100 and Classic events were part of the wider Prudential Ride London festival and largely followed the Olympic road cycling race route making them a key part of the Olympic legacy. Members were reminded that the Prudential Ride London-Surrey 100 was an annual mass participation event for amateur cyclists and the Prudential Ride London-Surrey Classic was an elite race of 150 professional riders.

He highlighted the charitable element of the races and the income generation from sponsorship and informed Members that the race had won 7 national and international awards.

He went on to talk about the concerns raised by some communities along the route and explained that the Council had worked hard with the race organiser to address these which included the use of rolling road closures and a large amount of engagement with residents was planned.

He referred Members to further information on the new 46 mile race that had been proposed and to the equalities impact assessment that demonstrated that the event organiser has responded to points raised.

Members were pleased to see the introduction of the new route and commended the use of rolling road closures to ensure that roads open as quickly as possible after the race has passed. They felt that the event was a key aspect of the County’s Olympic Legacy and that the route that most cyclists wanted to follow, were the event routes for the Olympic Road race and time trial. Residents concerns were recognised and Members were pleased to see plans to ensure that roads were reopened in good time after the event. Members also agreed that the equality impact assessment identified a clear action plan to address issues.

RESOLVED:

1.           Cabinet agrees to host the Prudential Ride London-Surrey 100 and Classic across same route as in 2015 for the 2018 and 2019 events. (Note: the agreement is in place for 2016 and 2017)

2.           Subject to the event continuing to be fully supported by the Mayor of London, the request from London/Surrey Cycle Partnership (the event organiser) for them to establish new route for a 46 mile event for 2016, be approved in principle.

3.           That authority be delegated to the Strategic Director for Environment and Infrastructure, in consultation with the Cabinet Member for Localities and Community Wellbeing and the Cabinet Member for Highways, Transport and Flooding to agree any changes that may be required prior to the 2018 and 2019 events taking place.

Reasons for Decisions:

Recommendation 1 – The recommendation has been made to allow for the detailed plan for the 2018 and 2019 events to be started, the map of the route for the London-Surrey 100 and Classic is attached to the submitted report as Annex 1.

The event has received good feedback from those who were surveyed on the event day and has received national and international awards. Concerns remain as to the impact of the event on communities on the route particularly in the Leith Hill area that the event organiser will continue to address.

Recommendation 2 – As a response to the Cabinet Member’s direction to ensure that where possible roads are reopened as early as possible, the event organiser has put forward the proposal of the 46 mile route.

The benefits of the proposal are seen as:

·        Allowing the earlier road reopening on the western section of the route

·        The shorter route is likely to support the strategic objective of encouraging new cyclists to take part in the event

·        The shorter route is aimed at opening the event to new demographic groups who would be more likely to take part in the shorter event

The detailed proposal document is attached to the submitted report as Annex 2. 

Recommendation 3 - The delegation will ensure that there is continued strategic and elected Member oversight of the event arrangements during the detailed planning phases of the event plan and that changes can be made to the event arrangements in a proactive manner to ensure the needs of residents, participants and spectators continue to be met.