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THE MAYOR’S VISION FOR CYCLINGPrudential RideLondon celebrates the true cycling spirit in this city, building on the Mayor’s Vision for Cycling, which aims to ensure two wheels are at the heart of our transport network.

Previous levels of investment in cycling have been trebled to almost £1billion. A new network of high-quality cycle routes is being introduced throughout the city. These routes will help deliver a substantial increase in cycling and substantial benefits for all – better fitness, enjoyment, easier travel, cleaner air and less traffic.

A flagship route – the East-West Cycle Superhighway – will run for at least 15 miles, from the western suburbs, through the heart of the capital, to the City, Canary Wharf and Barking in the east. It will be the longest substantially segregated continuous cycle route of any city in Europe. It will use a new segregated cycle track along, among other places, the Victoria Embankment.

The £913 million investment programme is now in delivery, with four segregated superhighways currently being built and a number of major junctions also under reconstruction. Building work is also underway on the Quietways network of back-street cycle routes. The first Quietways, the first sections of segregated superhighway and the first rebuilt junctions will open this year.

The Central London Cycling Grid, a set of safe, connected routes for cyclists across central London will comprise a mixture of Quietways (slower routes on low-traffic side streets, for new and less confident cyclists) and Superhighways (high capacity routes on main roads for fast commuters). The Central London Cycling Grid will cross Oxford Street in three places and has parallel routes to its north and south.

Across the Western world, forward-thinking cities are investing hundreds of millions of pounds in the bicycle, knowing that well-designed schemes can deliver benefits far greater than their relatively modest cost. These policies are a step-change in cycling provision, and the Mayor and TfL are committed to delivering them as one of their highest priorities. This is about so much more than routes for cyclists. It is about the huge health and economic benefits that cycling can bring. And with London’s population set to reach 10 million by 2030, it is about helping the transport system meet the enormous demands that will be placed on it in the future.

£100m is earmarked for Outer London boroughs, allowing them to create ‘mini-Hollands’. The programme will specifically target people who make short car journeys in outer London that could be cycled easily instead.

Work is now underway in the three winning boroughs, Enfield, Waltham Forest and Kingston upon Thames, to make them become as cycle-friendly as their Dutch equivalents and become the model that towns and cities all over Britain will want to copy. Innovative junction designs and low-level traffic signals for cyclists are also now being delivered by TfL following successful off-street trials last year.

The Mayor’s Vision for Cycling will help cycling become normal, just part of everyday life, something people feel comfortable doing in their ordinary clothes, something they hardly think about.

TH E ORGAN I S ERS

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HISTORY OF PRUDENTIAL RIDELONDONThe origins of RideLondon can be traced back to the momentus decision by the IOC on 6 July 2005 in Singapore when London was awarded the rights to stage the 2012 Olympic & Paralympic Games. As a result of this win, London opened its roads to cycling in a way that had never been done before. In 2007, London not only hosted the Tour de France Grand Depart to great acclaim, but also closed roads to create a day-long safe cycling environment in the iconic city centre, known at the time as ‘The Mayor of London’s Freewheel’. The event is now an annual highlight in the city’s calendar of major events which includes the Tour of Britain and the forthcoming UCI Track Cycling World Championships 2016.

As London’s experience for staging world-class international events grew, it was the creation of a small team dedicated to securing further major events for the city in 2008 that was the catalyst for creating the city’s ‘Marathon on Wheels’.

Over subsequent years London’s major events team, based in London & Partners (formerly Visit London), worked with industry experts, Transport for London and the many different stakeholders within the city to explore the feasibility and subsequently develop a new world-class event for cycling that could one day rival London’s most iconic sporting events such as the London Marathon and the Wimbledon Championships. The annual event would include the world’s top men, women and handcyclists racing as part of the international cycling calendar;

challenge and inspire people from all backgrounds to get on two wheels; and be an event that the whole city could be proud of and ultimately own.

It was in late 2011 when Mayor Boris Johnson approved the recommendation to create the event and, at the start of the Olympic year, the search for a suitably qualified and experienced Delivery Partner was launched.

After detailed work, a joint venture from the organisers of London Marathon and the Tour of Britain under the name of the London & Surrey Cycling Partnership was selected to make the event a reality. The event would be delivered in partnership with Surrey County Council and include a route through the Surrey Hills, which international cyclists would become familiar with at the Olympic Games road race.

In August 2012, as the Olympic Games drew to a close, the Mayor of London and the London & Surrey Cycling Partnership, alongside British Cycling and double Olympic champion Laura Trott, formally launched RideLondon and called for fans to sign up to the 100-mile challenge.

By the time of the announcement of the event’s first title sponsor, Prudential, in early 2013 more than 55,000 people had signed up to be one of the first riders to participate in the inaugural Prudential RideLondon-Surrey 100, part of the Prudential RideLondon festival weekend with coverage to be broadcast live on BBC and international TV.

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The Prudential RideLondon vision was to showcase the capital to nationwide and international audiences and inspire more people to take up regular cycling.

Attracting both international and domestic spectator and participant spend, the Prudential RideLondon festival was designed to not only bring associated benefits for the London economy, but to also showcase our great city and promote opportunities for future investment.

As part of the legacy of the Olympic Games, Prudential RideLondon puts our capital on the world stage and sees the newly reopened Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park in action once again as the Prudential RideLondon-Surrey 100 cyclists start their 100-mile challenge in the iconic Park.

By positioning London as the best cycling city in the world, and establishing the event in the annual sporting calendar, Prudential RideLondon is predicted to attract 200,000 visitors from outside London and will not only encourage more funds for future investment in cycling campaigns and city promotion, but also demonstrate London’s ability to host major events and build upon our reputation as one of the greatest cities. In its first year participants from over 70 countries took part in the event and footage of the sportive was distributed to over 100 countries worldwide.

In the long term, Prudential RideLondon is also designed to encourage more cycling in London and the UK. Cycling on London’s main roads has almost trebled in recent years, helping to reduce congestion on London’s road and transport network as well as promoting the benefits of healthy living and active participation in sport.

In its first year, more than 16,000 people started the Prudential RideLondon-Surrey 100, more than 50,000 took part in Prudential RideLondon FreeCycle and over 1,000 volunteers helped ensure 99 per cent of participants rated the event as good or excellent.

In 2014, amid driving rain and strong winds caused by the tail end of Hurricane Bertha, over 20,000 completed the Prudential RideLondon-Surrey 100, with 60,000 taking part in the FreeCycle on a glorious sunny day. In 2015, we expect a record number of more than 95,000 riders to take part in the event.

On an economic scale, the projected impact of Prudential RideLondon is worth tens of millions of pounds; this excludes any monies raised for charity and benefits to the wider community. The organisers have also set a goal for Prudential RideLondon to become the largest charity fundraising cycle event in the world. In its first year, riders in the Prudential RideLondon-Surrey 100 raised more than £7 million for charity and in 2014, riders raised more than £10 million for charity, setting a new record for a UK one-day cycling event for a second successive year.

In 2015, the route for the Prudential RideLondon-Surrey 100 will build on the success of the 2013 and 2014 events. To respond to the huge demand for the event, places have been increased by 25 per cent since 2014 with more than 25,000 riders expected to cross the Start Line in Queen Elizabeth Park Olympic Park on 2 August.

The Hors Categorie status awarded to the Prudential RideLondon-Surrey Classic by the UCI, the international cycling federation, has attracted an even stronger professional field in 2015. The increase in UCI ranking points and prize money means more star names are signing up for the event and offers the Classic event a stepping stone to becoming part of the UCI World Tour.

In 2015, the newest event in the Prudential RideLondon festival of cycling is the 10th Brompton World Championship Final, which will feature in the Prudential RideLondon Grand Prix races in St James’s Park. It’s the first time that the Brompton World Championship Final will be held in London, and this unique event will open with a Le Mans-style start as 500 smartly-dressed competitors from around the world make a mad dash to unfold their bikes before setting off on the circuit.

Six Festival Zones (up from five in 2014) in Prudential RideLondon FreeCycle will offer riders a chance to stop and enjoy a huge range of free bike-based entertainment and to try out many different bike-based activities. The women’s Prudential RideLondon Grand Prix race will also be one of the biggest one-day races on the international calendar and will again be televised live by the BBC.

We look forward to welcoming you to what will be an inspirational weekend of cycling in London and Surrey.

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THE ORGANISERSPrudential RideLondon is a world-class weekend cycling festival developed by the Mayor of London, Transport for London and London & Partners in partnership with Surrey County Council. The event is managed by the London & Surrey Cycling Partnership.

The London & Surrey Cycling Partnership is a joint venture between London Marathon Events Limited, owner and operator of the Virgin Money London Marathon, and SweetSpot Group, operator of The Tour of Britain.

“In just two years, Prudential RideLondon is established as the world’s greatest festival of cycling and this year we expect more than 95,000 riders to participate in five different events over the weekend.

“It has already raised more than £17 million for charity, inspired hundreds of thousands of people to get on a bike and won 11 major national awards.

“We are proud to have delivered this extraordinary event. Thank you to everyone who has helped along the way.”

Hugh Brasher,Event Director, London Marathon Events Limited

Hugh Roberts,CEO, SweetSpot Group Limited

THE SPONSORAs part of Prudential’s tradition of building a better future for our customers and our shared communities, we are delighted to continue our sponsorship of Prudential RideLondon – a celebration of health, sport and community which showcases our home city to the world and raises millions of pounds for charity.

THE LONDON MARATHON CHARITABLE TRUSTThis summer’s third Prudential RideLondon-Surrey 100 will help The London Marathon Charitable Trust continue to support a wide variety of facilities that will inspire and increase the numbers of people regularly taking part in sports and physical activities throughout London and in other areas in which London Marathon Events Limited stages events, including Surrey.

Previous grants have supported the enhancement of changing facilities to encourage more women to get active, the provision of devices that allow people with mobility challenges dignified entry into the water when they go swimming and the construction of state of the art games areas on inner city housing estates.

With cycling fever sweeping the country, funding from The Trust has helped ensure that a diverse range of cycling schemes reach out into the wider community to encourage and engage the cycling stars of the future as well as families who simply want to enjoy the great outdoors by bike.

Last year Runnymeade Rockets BMX Club in Surrey received a £50,000 grant from the Trust towards the refurbishment of its 330m-long BMX track. The improved facilities have helped the riders reach new heights and eight members of the club will represent Great Britain at the 2015 World Championship in Belgium in July 2015.

Herne Hill Velodrome in south east London is one of the oldest cycling tracks in Britain and the last remaining venue from the 1948 London Olympics still in use today. It undoubtedly occupies a unique place in Britain’s cycling history, but it has been in need of funds for regeneration projects like a new pavilion that will offer shelter, extra changing facilities, space to train and rooms for coaching sessions. In 2005 The London Marathon Charitable Trust awarded a grant of £38,000 to Herne Hill for lighting and resurfacing and a substantial commitment has been made by the Trust to support the new pavilion.

On the other side of the capital, The London Marathon Charitable Trust awarded a grant of £2 million to develop legacy facilities at Lee Valley VeloPark in Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park. Sir Rodney Walker, Chair of The London Marathon Charitable Trust, said recently: “The London Marathon Charitable Trust was delighted to confirm its commitment to the provision of legacy facilities at the VeloPark. These facilities will help to achieve one of the objectives of the London 2012 Olympic Games – one which has been shared by The Trust for nearly 30 years – to ensure a lasting benefit for the whole community.”

In 2014, an enclosed cycle track was opened at Pield Heath School, Hillingdon, where many children with special needs from all over the Borough and beyond will

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have a secure environment to experience cycling, actually learn to cycle and receive lessons in road safety. This new track will also be used as a facility for Age UK to provide older riders with a safe opportunity to take exercise.

The capital’s many parks have also benefited from grants from The London Marathon Charitable Trust. The Trust recently pledged a total of £195,000 to create BMX tracks in Lambeth’s Norwood Park, Burgess Park in Southwark and Acacia Road in Merton.

When more than 25,000 amateur cyclists cross the Finish Line of this summer’s sportive, arms held aloft in celebration after conquering a truly great challenge, every one of them will have done their bit to support the building and renovation of facilities to encourage individuals to get off their couches and to get active.

When the costs of putting on events like Prudential RideLondon are met, London Marathon Events Limited, the major partner in the London & Surrey Cycling Partnership, puts the surplus into The London Marathon Charitable Trust. The Trust has awarded more than £56 million since 1981 to more than 1,000 sports projects across the capital, in Surrey and beyond.

All of the London Marathon Events Limited’s share of the profits from the Prudential RideLondon festival of cycling will go to The London Marathon Charitable Trust. All bequest income from the Prudential RideLondon-Surrey 100 registration system has already gone directly to The London Marathon Charitable Trust.

For more information about the work of The Trust,visit: www.lmct.org.uk

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Official Title Sponsor of Prudential RideLondon www.pru.co.uk

Official Health Club of Prudential RideLondonwww.virginactive.co.uk

Official Online Giving Partner of Prudential RideLondon www.virginmoneygiving.com

Official Retailer of Prudential RideLondon

www.wiggle.co.uk

Official Cycle Clothing of Prudential RideLondon

www.wiggle.co.uk/dhb

Official Neutral Service Provider of Prudential RideLondon

www.mavic.com

Official Car of Prudential RideLondon

www.skoda.co.uk

Mayor of London, leading the best big city in the world www.london.gov.uk

Transport for London is responsible for the capital’s integrated transport system

www.tfl.gov.uk

London & Partners is the Mayor’s official promotional

organisation for London www.londonandpartners.com

Surrey County Council, working in partnership with local service

providers and related organisationswww.surreycc.gov.uk

THANKS TO OUR SPONSORS & PARTNERS

London & Surrey Cycling Partnership, the delivery partner of Prudential RideLondon – a joint venture between London Marathon Events Limited and SweetSpot Group Limited