Tour of Britain Cycle Race

LCIC completed a project with Norfolk County Council and race organisers SweetSpot to identify the carbon outputs relating to the Norfolk leg of the 2010 Tour of Britain.  When the Tour of Britain arrived in Norfolk in September 2010, the 100 professional riders were accompanied by about 50 cars, 30 vans, 64 motorbikes and 70 additional vehicles - and that didn’t take into account the estimated 70,000 people who turned out to watch the race.  We calculated how many vehicles travelled across the county and how far, and assessed other fuel uses - such as the electricity - used to host the race.  Other areas for consideration were the production and transportation of food for the event and how fans travelled to come and watch the race.  We then suggested activities that could take place locally to offset the carbon impact of the race; for instance, encouraging people to cycle rather than drive to work.

The Norfolk stage was the longest in the race's history: starting at King's Lynn, passing through Hunstanton, Burnham Market, Holkham, Wells, Sheringham, Holt, Aylsham, Norwich and Wroxham, before ending mid-afternoon on South Beach Parade in Great Yarmouth, a distance of 117 miles.

Dr Simon Gerrard, Chief Technical Officer, said: “LCIC was delighted to have had the opportunity to work with the Tour of Britain to help reduce the carbon impacts of its operation.”  Derrick Murphy, Norfolk County Council's cabinet member for cultural services, added: “Our county is renowned for its pioneering environmental and science businesses and it's really pleasing to see a local organisation, who are the leading lights in their sector, doing work within their own county, but which will bring benefit to the whole of Great Britain.”