Gold! Multiple medals for the Team GB Cyclists are expected to spur on Staffordshire cyclists.
Jason Kenny, Laura Trott have brought home 5 Gold medals between them, with Mark Cavendish adding to the 11 medal cycling haul with a Silver, and our success in Rio is likely to bring on a renewed love of pedal power back home.
Staffordshire riders are spoilt for choice when it comes to beautiful biking routes, from the Staffordshire Moorlands rolling hills, to the more daredevil routes on on Cannock Chase, or the miles of peaceful canal side towpaths, there’s no reason not to dust off the bicycle clips & join the Olympians. With over £4m improvements to popular routes, and 100 miles of national cycle routes, cyclists of all abilities will find our county perfect for cycling.
Built entirely by volunteers, Cannock Chase’s miles of routes cater to all levels of cycling prowess, with “severe” graded Stile Cop trail. the intermediate “Follow the Dog” route amongst others, and the smooth & serene flat routes, all taking in the beautiful Staffordshire scenery. For those wanting to venture further afield, the Pedal Peak project features 14km of new cycleway was completed in 2015, linking Staffordshire with the Peak District. The multi-million pound project transformed the historic Caldon Canal towpath for cyclists & walkers alike.
Mark Deaville, Cabinet Member for Transport and Highways at Staffordshire County Council said: “There’s huge passion for cycling here in Staffordshire and with Team GB cyclists enjoying huge success in Rio we are sure to see even more people on their bikes. And, it’s only a few weeks since British cyclist Chris Froome won his third Tour de France boosting the popularity of cycling even more. We have invested around £4 million in cycling infrastructure improvements in the last year alone, making us a much more connected county, giving people alternative travel options and encouraging people to become more active. We’re also complementing this through a range of training and programmes to introduce people to cycling or give them more confidence to use their bikes regularly.
There are also a range of programmes across the county working to encourage more people to swap horsepower for pedal power, including the Bikeability Cycle Training which promotes cycling to around 10,000 pupils, aiming to deliver bike safety & enjoyment to the younger generation, a cause that can only be helped by the success of Team GB’s cyclists.
Potential pedallers can use the cycle route planner map at https://cyclemap.staffordshire.gov.uk/ to map out routes between Staffordshire postcodes, with the option to avoid busy sections of road, and it will even tell you how many calories the trip will burn! Perfect for planning your end of route refreshments.
Individual cycling maps for all districts, which show both traffic free and quieter routes suitable for cycling and on the road are also available from local libraries or can be downloaded at www.staffordshire.gov.uk/cycling.
