The number of adults cycling once a week in England is continuing to boom with 132,000 more adults riding regularly now than in October last year.
This brings the total number of adults regularly riding their bikes up to 2.1 million, Sport England announced today.
Commenting on the news, British Cycling’s chief executive, Ian Drake, said: “The fact that cycling is continuing an upward trend is of course in part down to the amazing successes we’re seeing on the world stage with Britain’s cyclists riding high. But medals and role models alone cannot transform Britain into a nation of people on bikes.
“Fundamental to our approach is a mixed economy of funding and support from across the spectrum of the private, public and voluntary sectors.
“Working alongside Sky, Sport England and over 100 council partners we have created opportunities across the whole country for people of all ages to discover cycling and what it can offer. Without these valuable relationships we wouldn’t be celebrating the results we’re enjoying today.
“With local authority decision makers, our partners and a strong network of staff and volunteers all working together to inspire people to get on bikes, we’ve got a great blueprint for success and we’ll be building on this through to Rio and beyond.
"We’ve got a fantastic summer of cycling ahead of us with 14 Sky Ride Big Bike events, the Tour de France coming to Britain, the Commonwealth Games and a revamped Tour of Britain providing us with thousands more opportunities to win even more people over about the benefits of getting on their bikes.
“I’m especially pleased to see good results in participation levels among women and the 14-25 age group. However, what is clear if you look over the longer term is that the hard work we put into creating a London 2012 legacy is producing sustainable growth which means the cycling boom is here to stay.”
Key British Cycling participation successes since April 2013 include:
- Growth in membership – British Cycling has gained 40,000 members since London 2012, a near 50% year on year increase;
- 17 Sky Rides delivered in partnership with our principal partner Sky (city centre, traffic-free rides) attracting over 100,000 people;
- 1,800 local guided rides to help people get to know their local routes and gain confidence to ride regularly;
- A 4% growth in the number of competitive events;
- A 28% growth in personal challenge events, known as sportives;
- Over 90,000 more young people engaged in quality coaching experiences through the Go-Ride programme;
- Partnerships with over 100 councils which support our work to provide more opportunities to ride and race this year.
