Pedal Power Report

Pedal Power: an Analysis of the Economic Contribution of Off-road Cycling at Haldon Forest Park

Pedal Power:

an Analysis of the Economic Contribution of Off-road Cycling at Haldon Forest Park

Report Produced by: Dr Neil Ormerod Centre for Sport, Leisure and Tourism Research University of Exeter Business School www.exeter.ac.uk/slt In association with: The Economic and Social Research Council and 1 South West Cycle Adventure

May 2014

The European Agricultural Fund for Rural Development: Europe investing in rural areas

Contents Introduction

3

Methods 4 Tourism and off-road cycling in South West England

5

The economic significance of off-road cycling at Haldon Forest Park

8

A picture of participation

10

Summary 16 References 17

3

Cyclists of all ages can enjoy purpose-built off-road cycling trails

Introduction This report presents key findings and recommendations from a three-year study into the economic contribution of off-road cycling at Haldon Forest Park. The research was delivered through a partnership between the Centre for Sport, Leisure and Tourism Research (CSLTR) at the University of Exeter Business School and 1 South West Cycle Adventure (www.1sw.org.uk).

The study was supported by the Economic and Social Research Council (ESRC) under a Capacity Building Cluster Award (RES-187-24-0002), and examined the relationship between off-road cycling and the tourism and leisure economy through the 1 South West Project. This four-year multi-partner initiative introduced a new regional tourism and recreation product to South West England, in the form of ten purposebuilt off-road cycling sites located within woodland areas. Led

by Forestry Commission England, this large-scale partnership development was funded by Sport England and the Rural Development Programme for England (RDPE) (Sustainable Rural Tourism Programme).

The ten sites have been designed as year-round recreation facilities offering a range of opportunities for cyclists of all abilities. Focussing on Haldon Forest Park, this report presents the findings from a detailed evaluation of the economic activity generated by the 1SW initiative. Furthermore, the study provides a fine-grained picture of the user profile at the site.

Together, these aspects provide important data for the future management and development of off-road cycling at Haldon Forest Park and more broadly within the region.

Purpose-built off-road cycling infrastructure represents a relatively new form of tourism and recreation product. Over the last decade, widespread development of such facilities has taken place in the UK, primarily within forest and woodland areas. This growth reflects an increase in pressure on woodland areas from unofficial cycling and trail construction, and recognition at policy level, that economic, health, and social benefits could potentially be generated by promoting off-road cycling. Nethertheless, comparatively little detailed attention has been paid to understanding the extent to which off-road cycling benefits the tourism and leisure economy.

Even less is known about the characteristics of off-road cycling visitors as consumers.

To address this knowledge gap and evaluate the economic case for investing in off-road cycling, this independent study gathered detailed empirical evidence from off-road cyclists relating to their visitor behaviour and associated economic transactions.

The timing of the study was significant, in so far as it presents a unique evaluation of a new woodland recreation development which was created at a time when the economic value of the public forest estate was under greater scrutiny than ever, and consultation on its future management and ownership was taking place.

4

Not just a summer activity, purpose-built trails attract visitors year-round.

Methods Haldon Forest Park, located on the outskirts of Exeter in Devon, was chosen as the case study location following a detailed appraisal of the ten 1 South West ‘trail hub’ sites (www.1sw.org.uk). Conducting the study within the South West also had a broader significance due to its national importance as a tourism destination. In terms of domestic tourism trips, it is the most visited holiday region in the UK (Smith, 2010: 45). Furthermore, tourism accounts for around 11% of regional employment and generates an estimated £9.4 billion for the regional economy (SWTA, 2008).

This report presents an abridged version of extensive material contained in a doctoral study by Neil Ormerod entitled ‘An Examination of the Challenges of Capturing the Value of Adventurous Off-road Cycling: A perspective from South West England’ (PhD thesis, University of Exeter 2014).

The study employed a large-scale questionnaire survey to gather information from 486 off-road cyclists. Primary data collection was conducted quarterly throughout 2012, enabling the study to examine off-road cycling activity through the seasons.

The following sections draw on this dataset. The first section evaluates the relationship between off-road cycling and tourism. The second quantifies the economic contribution made by off-road cycling visitors, while the third examines the visitor profile of off-road cyclists at Haldon Forest Park.

The report then concludes by reviewing the key findings and presenting the research recommendations.

The study gathered data from 486 off-road cyclists at Haldon Forest Park

Pedal Power: an Analysis of the Economic Contribution of Off-road Cycling at Haldon Forest Park

Tourism and off-road cycling in South West England This section examines the tourism profile of off-road cyclists at Haldon Forest Park, within the context of five key questions which provide a detailed picture of the current tourism baseline. These questions refer to the number and types of visitors, the seasonal patterns of visitation, the types of holiday trip associated with off-road cycling, and the intended return rates of visitors to Haldon Forest Park.

Table 1: Visitor profile, sample and annual visitor number estimate

Visitor type

Sample

%

Annual visitor estimate

430

89

29,510**

External day visitors (EDV)

5

1

332**

Internal holiday visitors (IHV)

26

5

1,658**

External holiday visitors (EHV)

18

4

1,326**

Overseas holiday visitors (OHV)

3

1

332 **

482

100

33,157*

Internal day visitors (IDV)

Total

* Total estimated annual visitors derived from analysis of automatic trail usage counts and respondent questionnaire data ** Visitor numbers extrapolated from sample proportions and rounded to nearest integer

Q1. How many day and holiday off-road cycling visitors does Haldon Forest Park attract?

This baseline broadly reflects the profile identified by the 2006 feasibility study which was conducted prior to the commissioning of the 1 South West Cycle Adventure project (Tym et al, 2006). This study identified that 3.7% of visitors were on a holiday trip. In comparison, the current study identified a higher proportion of holiday visitors (10.0%) which may indicate growth within this group. However, the two studies differed significantly in their approach and scale.

Q2. What are the seasonal patterns of use of off-road cycling day and holiday visitors?

Figure 1 shows the seasonal site usage of the day and holiday visitor subgroups. Importantly, holiday visitors were identified in three out of the four seasons, the exception being winter.

For tourism promotion, this demonstrates that site use begins before, and extends beyond, the summer tourism season.

Thus, there is opportunity to promote off-road cycling outside peak holiday periods. For internal day visitors, the site is a year round destination which exhibits an increase in visitors during the spring and summer months. Clearly, ‘fair weather’ cyclists swell the visitor population during these months.

Figure 1: Day and holiday visitor seasonal site usage

Haldon Forest Park attracts 33,157 off-road cycling visitors per annum. Internal visitors (visitors from within the South West regional boundary) account for 94% (Table 1). Of these visitors, day visitors were found to be the predominant group (89%). External visitors (visitors from outside the SW) were split between day visitors (1%) and holiday visitors (4%).

Overseas visitors accounted for the remaining 1%.

IDV WINTER

EDV SPRING

IHV SUMMER

EHV

OHV AUTUMN

5

6

The survey was conducted at the trail head at Haldon Forest Park

Q3. What type of holiday is off-road cycling associated with?

Q4. How long do visitors spend at Haldon Forest Park?

Nearly half of all holiday respondents were recorded as being on a short break (48.9%), a further 34.0% of visitors stated that their trip was an additional long holiday, and 17.1% stated that their trip was their main holiday of the year.

Dwell time was not a function of the estimated time needed to ride the longest trail at Haldon Forest Park (Challenge Trail, 1.5 Hours). Dwell time for all groups was more than twice this maximum (Table 2), indicating that respondents rode multiple laps and / or multiple trails. Visitor trail use analysis supports this observation, revealing that 73% of users rode both the red-graded Ridge Ride Trail (Difficult) and blue-graded Challenge Trail (Moderate) during their visit. See Ormerod (2014) for detail.

Internal holiday visitors comprised the lowest proportion of main holiday visitors (3.8%), but accounted for the highest proportion of short break visitors (65.4%, Figure 2). This trend fits with the visitor profile, as their visits took place within their home region. In contrast, the external holiday visitor category reveals an almost even distribution between the three categories. For overseas visitors, a 2:1 ratio was observed between main holiday and additional long holiday categories.

Figure 2: Type of holiday by holiday visitor group

Table 2: Day and holiday visitor site dwell time (mean)

Visitor type

Mean dwell time (Hours)

Internal day visitor

3.1

External day visitor

3.9

Internal holiday visitor

3.1

External holiday visitor

3.5

Overseas holiday visitor

3.7

Dwell time cannot be seen purely as riding time, as it invariably includes time associated with unloading and loading bikes from cars, rest stops and other non-riding time factors. The observation that the majority of visitors ride the Ridge Ride and Challenge Trails also shows that their cycling ability is sufficient to ride both trails, and that they are not restricted in their trail choice. Overall, these results suggest that, while the trails at Haldon Forest Park are relatively short (the maximum being six miles), the combination of the trails and facilities provide sufficient opportunity and interest to keep visitors onsite for between three and four hours.

7

Haldon provides a range of facilities beyond just trails

Q5. What is the return rate of day and holiday visitors?

99.5% of internal day visitors stated that they would return (Table 3). The results from external day visitors show that all respondents would visit the site again; the visit considered to be worth the time and cost incurred in travelling from outside the region. Internal holiday visitors were also unanimous that they would return to the site. Among the external holiday category, 88.9% of visitors stated that they would visit again, reflecting a highly positive experience at the site. Overseas visitors articulated a return rate of 66.7%. Although this represents the lowest return rate, it is not unexpected given the additional time and cost involved in their returning to the site.

Table 3: Day and holiday visitor intention to return Visitor type Internal day visitor (n = 430)

Intention to return Yes

%

No

%

428

99.5

2

0.5

External day visitor (n = 5)

5

100

0

_

Internal holiday visitor (n = 26)

26

100

0

_

External holiday visitor (n = 18)

16

88.9

2

11.1

2

66.7

1

33.3

477

99.0

5

1.0

Overseas holiday visitor (n = 3) Total (n = 482)

Table 4: Recorded onsite and offsite expenditure categories Onsite expenditure

Offsite Expenditure

Parking

Accommodation

Bike Hire

Travel and Transport

Go Ape

Entertainment

CafĂŠ

Non-essential shopping

Other

Groceries Bike shop products / services Off-road coaching / guiding services

8

Recruitment on a sunny January day!

The economic significance of off-road cycling at Haldon Forest Park In the previous section, the profile and volume of off-road cyclists was determined. The following two questions build on this analysis, first by calculating the onsite and offsite economic contribution made by the different day and holiday visitor groups, and second by evaluating the proportional breakdown of this expenditure.

Q6. How much do off-road cyclists spend?

This study identified expenditure which was directly attributable to off-road cycling at Haldon Forest Park, and classified according to whether spending took place onsite or offsite (Table 4). Travel costs were also calculated to reveal the hidden costs incurred in visiting the site. For a full discussion of the methods please see Ormerod (2014).

The total for each group was calculated by combining onsite, offsite, and travel cost totals where appropriate (Table 5) and extrapolating them according to the annual visitor estimates presented in Table 1. These totals were then combined to produce the annual economic significance figure £0.7 million.

Mean per person expenditure totals were also calculated to identify average individual economic contributions (Table 5).

Q7. What is the proportional breakdown of day and holiday visitor onsite and offsite expenditure?

Table 6 shows the proportional breakdown of the onsite and offsite expenditure shown in Table 5. Overseas holiday visitors represent the highest spenders for both categories. External day visitors are the second highest spending group; this reflects the increased offsite travel costs incurred in visiting the site from outside the South West. However their onsite expenditure is the lowest among the groups.

Internal and external holiday visitors spend similar mean amounts offsite (£64 and £62 respectively). However, they differ in their onsite expenditure. External holiday visitors were found to spend 1.6 times more than internal holiday visitors, although the proportional split of their expenditure is comparable. Onsite spending by internal day visitors was found to be broadly consistent with that of the external day visitor group (£8 and £6 respectively). The majority of this spending is focussed on the onsite café and bike hire businesses, highlighting the importance of these facilities to the modal visitor group.

9

Riders took a great interest in the research

Offsite expenditure £

Mean £

Total Mean expenditure per person £

–

13

6

27,964

84

90

12

106,436

64

76

Onsite expenditure £

–

Mean £

8

Travel Cost £

Mean £

Table 5: Economic significance of expenditure associated with off-road cycling at Haldon Forest Park

Internal day visitor (IDV)

137,810

5

247,586

External day visitor (EDV)

–

–

1,887

Internal holiday visitor (IHV)

–

–

20,044

External holiday visitor (EHV)

–

–

24,736

19

83,106

62

81

Overseas holiday visitor (OHV)

–

–

9,613

29

45,323

137

166

137,810

–

303,866

–

262,829

–

–

Total

Annual economic significance of expenditure associated with Haldon Forest Park £704,505 (£0.7 million) Figures rounded to nearest £

Onsite Expenditure

Table 6: Proportional breakdown of visitor onsite and offsite expenditure IHV %

EHV %

OHV %

Parking

20

45

21

18

8

30

–

44

53

46

Café

39

55

34

29

46

Other

Accommodation

Offsite Expenditure

EDV %

Bike hire

Total

11

–

1

–

–

100

100

100

100

100

–

–

27

27

49

Travel and transport

–

45

23

20

5

Eating and drinking out

–

37

30

29

33

Entertainment

–

2

4

4

5

Non-essential shopping

–

10

7

3

5

Groceries

–

–

7

16

3

Bike Shop

–

6

2

1

–

Cycle coaching / guiding Total

IDV %

–

–

–

–

–

100

100

100

100

100

10

Construction at Haldon Forest Park

A picture of participation Classifying off-road cyclists according to whether they are on a day or holiday visit provides only a partial picture of visitors to Haldon Forest Park. To gain a more detailed understanding, the study analysed the participation characteristics and behaviours of off-road cyclists. Understanding how visitors interact with the site has important implications for its ongoing management and development. The approach taken by this study was to recognise users as consumers, with specific behaviours, needs, motivations, and expenditure characteristics. Cluster Analysis was used to assess whether visitors could be grouped according to these characteristics. Groups are determined by patterns within the data, and are distinguished by their specific internal characteristics (Hair et al, 1998: 473).

Figure 3: The number of respondents by cluster group 120

80

116 91

40

48

20

0

Six groups were derived using the SPSS TwoStep clustering method (Figure 3) based on four key variables: the type of offroad cycling provision preferred by visitors (e.g. purpose-built sites, the Public Rights of Way network (PROW), Cycle paths); bike ownership levels; the number of years of off-road cycling experience; and whether visitors had visited any other UK purpose-built off-road cycling site/s in the last 12 months.

Post-hoc non-parametric tests were then conducted using the remaining variables to identify any statistically significant differences between the groups. The following descriptions provide a brief outline of the cluster characteristics. For the purposes of this report, only the key attributes are presented in the following sections.

Cluster 1: Active trail centre riders

100

60

Q8. How many cluster groups were found at Haldon Forest Park?

32

Active trail centre riders

Active trail centre explorers

Active off-road explorers

Non-bike owners

29

27

Cycle path adventures

New trail centre riders

Contains the largest number of respondents (116) and is characterised by a preference for purpose-built off-road cycling sites (100%). Despite this preference, none of the members had visited another man-made off-road cycling site in the previous 12 months. However, the group does record the second highest number of visits to Haldon Forest Park after Cluster 2, (22.7 visits in the previous 12 months). All respondents are bike owners and have a minimum of one year’s off-road cycling experience.

11

Completing the questionnaire didn’t take very long

Cluster 2: Active trail centre explorers

Cluster 4: Non-bike owners

Forms the second largest group. Like Cluster 1 this group exhibits a preference for riding purpose-built off-road cycling sites. However, in contrast this extends to other UK sites, and for this reason the group is described as ‘explorers’.

All members had brought their own bike to the site and were found to have more than one year’s off-road cycling experience. The group was also labelled ‘Active’ because of the high mean number of visits made to Haldon Forest Park in the last 12 months (32.8). This level of visitation makes this cluster the most frequent user group at the site.

Contains 9.3% of respondents and is defined by its non-bike owner status. 65.6% of this group stated that they had not visited another purpose-built site in the previous 12 months.

The group was also found to prefer riding at purpose-built sites.

However, they had a clear need for bike hire at their chosen destination. The group is not especially ‘active’ due to its lower mean number of visits to Haldon Forest Park in the last 12 months (9.8).

Cluster 3: Active off-road explorers

The second smallest group. Like Cluster 3, this group is defined by its preference for cycling infrastructure (cycle paths 89.7%).

Whilst this group prefers cycle paths, their routine also includes purpose-built off-road facilities. This is illustrated by the mean number of visits made to the site (9.9). However, the use of other sites was limited, as 69% of respondents had not visited another UK off-road cycling site in the previous 12 months. All members are bike owners, and 79% had been off-road cycling for more than a year.

This group is defined by its preference (62.5%) for riding on the public rights of way (PROW) network, although, their cycling routine also includes purpose-built sites. For this reason it is labelled ‘off-road’ to distinguish it from the ‘trail centre’ labels allocated to clusters 1, 2 and 6. 52.1% of respondents also stated that they had ridden at another UK purpose-built cycling site during the previous year. All respondents were bike owners with more than a year’s off-road cycling experience.

The group records the third highest visitation frequency of the cluster groups (17.1 visits in the previous 12 months).

Cluster 5: Cycle path adventurers

Cluster 6: New trail centre riders Contains the smallest number of respondents (27). This group is characterised by the observation that 96.3% of respondents had less than one year’s off-road cycling experience.

Furthermore, the same proportion had not visited another purpose-built site in the UK. The group has a preference for man-made sites, but are less frequent visitors to Haldon Forest Park (9.3 visits in the previous 12 months). In common with clusters, 1, 2, 3 and 5, all respondents are bike owners.

12

Q9. What are the trip characteristics of the cluster groups?

Statistical testing identified a significant difference between the clusters at the 99% confidence level in terms of visit type.

The largest proportion of holiday visitors are contained within clusters 2 and 4, where holiday visitors account for 14% of the Active Trail Centre Explorers and 40% of the Non-bike Owner cluster groups (Figure 4).

that this group’s cycling behaviour includes visits to other purpose-built sites. The absence of holiday visitors within the New Trail Centre Riders is notable (Figure 4). However, this presents an opportunity for promoting the 1SW sites as a holiday product to this group.

Q10. When do the cluster groups visit Haldon Forest Park?

In all cases cycling frequency declines in the winter months (Figure 5). This observation was found to be statistically significant at the 99% confidence level. The three ‘active’ groups demonstrate the greatest commitment to winter cycling (over 80%). Despite the overall decline in cycling during the winter months the remaining groups still record winter cycling frequencies of between 70 and 80%.

Figure 4: Cluster group visit characteristics

The high number of holiday visitors within the non-bike owner category highlights the importance of the bike hire facility at Haldon Forest Park in enabling holiday visitors to use the cycling trails. The observation that the second highest number were found within the Active Trail Centre Explorer group, confirms

Riding frequency during the summer months was found to be consistent across the groups; all respondents ride in summer!

Off-road cycling is not substituted during the summer months for other leisure activities such as surfing. The Active Trail Centre Explorer group and the Active Off-road Explorers display identical cycling patterns for spring and autumn with all respondents riding in both seasons. The Active Trail Centre Riders and Cycle Path Adventurer groups show identical patterns for spring but record small declines of around (3-4%) in the frequency of respondents who ride during autumn. The Non-bike Owners and New Trail Centre Riders are the only groups which record a lower participation rate during spring (declines of 3.1% and 3.7% respectively).

Figure 5: Cluster group seasonal cycling patterns 100%

80%

60%

40%

20%

0%

Active trail centre riders

Active trail centre explorers

Winter (Dec-Feb)

Active off-road explorers Spring (Mar-May)

Non-bike owners Summer (Jun-Aug)

Cycle path adventures

New trail centre riders

Autumn (Sep-Nov)

Pedal Power: an Analysis of the Economic Contribution of Off-road Cycling at Haldon Forest Park

Q11. How many times do the cluster groups visit Haldon Forest Park?

Q12. How long do the cluster groups spend onsite?

Significant differences were observed at the 99% confidence level. Overall the ‘active’ labelled groups visited the site more frequently than the less active groups (Table 7).

Mean onsite dwell time for all cluster groups was found to be over two hours (Table 8). Statistical testing identified significant differences between the clusters at the 99% confidence level.

From Table 7 Clusters 1, 3 and 5 can be identified as having dwell times less than three hours. Clusters 2 and 4 have the longest dwell times (3.5 and 3.8 hours respectively). Cluster 6 recorded a dwell time in-between these cluster groupings (3.2 hours). Importantly, the results also show that the most frequent visitors (Cluster 2) exhibit the second longest dwell time of all groups, and the highest among the ‘Active’ groups.

Table 7: Cluster group visits in last 12 months Cluster group

Cluster group visits in last 12 months (Mean)

1

Active Trail Centre Riders

22.7

2

Active Trail Centre Explorers

32.8

3

Active Off-road Explorers

17.1

4

Non Bike Owners

9.8

5

Cycle Path Adventurers

9.9

6

New Trail Centre Riders

9.3

In contrast to high visitation frequencies among the ‘active groups’, the average frequency for the remaining groups equated to less than one visit per month. Lower visitation can be explained by cluster characteristics. The New Trail Centre Riders were less active cyclists who have been riding for less than one year. For the Cycle Path Adventurers, off-road cycling sites form a smaller part of their cycling behaviour. Non-Bike Owners visited the site the same number of times as these two other groups.

Table 8: Cluster group visit duration Cluster group

Mean dwell time (Hours)

1

Active Trail Centre Riders

2.9

2

Active Trail Centre Explorers

3.5

3

Active Off-road Explorers

2.9

4

Non Bike Owners

3.8

5

Cycle Path Adventurers

2.8

6

New Trail Centre Riders

3.2

Haldon has trails for all ages and abilities

13

14

Q13. What are the trail preferences of the different cluster groups?

The trail grade preferences of the groups were found to be significantly different at the 99% confidence level. Overall, easy trails were least favoured by all respondents. Difficult trails were favoured by the three ‘Active’ clusters and the Non-Bike Owner Cluster. Moderate trails were favoured by the Cycle Path Adventurers and New Trail Centre Riders. However, the Non-Bike Owner Cluster exhibits an almost equal preference for moderate and difficult trails (Figure 6). Taking this factor into consideration, the overall cluster split between these two trail grades more closely resembles a 50:50 distribution.

Figure 6: Cluster group trail grade preferences 100%

4

1

4

14

1 6

80%

7

12

75 60%

32

64

18

40%

18

11

20%

57

0%

4

11

13

Active trail centre riders

Active trail centre explorers

EASY

Active off-road explorers

MODERATE

4

3

Non-bike owners

Cycle path adventures

DIFFICULT

New trail centre riders

SEVERE

At the opposite end of the grading system, respondents with preferences for severe trails were found within five of the six groups. Unsurprisingly the two most experienced clusters (Clusters 2 and 3) exhibit the highest proportions, 15.4% and 8.5% respectively. See Ormerod (2014) for detail.

Q14. What motivates the cluster groups to go off-road cycling?

From the nine reasons shown in Figure 7, around two-thirds can be identified as being important to all cluster groups. These include: ‘Fitness / to lose weight’, ‘Be with friends / family’, ‘For a challenge’, ‘To explore the outdoors’, ‘Scenic views / fresh air’, and ‘To get away from daily pressures’. Significant differences between the clusters were identified at the 99% confidence level for the following variables: ‘To compete’, ‘For a challenge’, ‘Get away from daily pressures’ and ‘To find solitude’.

‘Finding solitude’ is more important to the ‘Active Trail Centre Explorer’ and ‘Non-bike owner’ groups. The Cycle Path Adventurer group recorded the smallest proportion looking ‘For a challenge’. Competitive reasons are of greatest importance to the two explorer clusters. In contrast, they are not cited by any of the New Trail Centre Riders. In general, these respondents had a lower level of engagement with the activity.

Figure 7: Cluster group off-road cycling motivations

100%

2.7 13.7

80% 60%

14.3

14.8

15.4

40% 15.0

20%

2.1 3.0 19.0

0%

Active trail centre riders

7.0

3.4

5.1

3.4

2.8

9.9

8.7

10.9

9.3

14.6

16.7

19.3

12.7

12.7 14.2

13.9

11.1 16.7

15.2 14.2

13.7

14.5

6.0 4.3

2.2 2.9

15.6

17.6

18.1

Active trail centre explorers

Active off-road explorers

Non-bike owners

4.0 3.8

15.1 20.4

15.9 16.7

14.8

10.1 16.0

18.5

1.7 2.5

4.6

21

18.5

Cycle path adventures

New trail centre riders

Fitness to lose weight (%)

To meet new people (%)

To compete (%)

Be with friends / family (%)

For a challenge (%)

To explore the outdoors (%)

Scenic views / fresh air (%)

Get away from daily pressures (%)

Find solitude (%)

Pedal Power: an Analysis of the Economic Contribution of Off-road Cycling at Haldon Forest Park

Statistically significant differences between the clusters at the 99% confidence level were identified for parking, café, and bike hire expenditure categories. Non-bike Owners represent the highest spending group, due to their bike hire expenditure.

Bike hire expenditure is also included in Clusters 1, 2 and 3 even though they are categorised as bike owners. This anomaly represents expenditure which took place at the bike hire facility but which was not for the purpose of hiring bikes e.g. servicing and shop purchases.

Active trail centre explorers

Active off-road explorers

Non-bike owners

Cycle path adventurers

New trail centre riders

Q15. How much do the cluster groups spend at Haldon Forest Park?

Table 9: Cluster group onsite expenditure Active trail centre riders

The variable ‘Meeting new people’ polarises the clusters and was of greatest importance to the New Trail Centre Riders, Active Off-road Explorers, and Active Trail Centre Explorer categories. For the variable, ‘Get away from daily pressures’ the distribution is more uniform. However, the ‘Non-bike owner category’ contained the smallest proportion of respondents who state this reason. This result is consistent with this group’s lower level of engagement with off-road cycling.

Parking £

1.53

1.86

1.97

2.59

2.14

2.00

Bike hire £

0.32

0.23

4.08

27.13

0.00

0.00

Café £

3.56

3.91

2.68

5.00

3.01

2.81

Other £

1.26

1.24

0.81

0.00

0.86

1.15

Total £

6.67

7.24

9.54

34.72

6.01

5.96

Within the remaining groups, the ‘active’ clusters spend more than the less active groups (Table 9). This shows that not only do they visit the site more frequently; they also contribute more economically each time they visit.

Importantly, spending by all groups was found to include obligatory (e.g. parking) and discretionary spending items.

Therefore, demonstrating that all groups contribute to the economic viability of the onsite businesses.

Purpose-built trails provide miles of smiles!

15

16

Summary This report examined three key areas relating to the economic contribution of off-road cycling. First, the relationship between tourism and off-road cycling was explored. This revealed that Haldon Forest Park attracts a large number of off-road cycling visitors annually (33,157) and that these include day and holiday visitors. Importantly holiday visitors were found in three out of the four seasons (Figure 1), demonstrating that site use by these visitors begins before, and extends beyond, the summer holiday season. This presents an opportunity for promoting the activity outside peak holiday periods. The study also identified that 99% of all visitors intended to return to ride the off-road trails at Haldon Forest Park (Table 3).

Although the site was found to attract both visitor types, day and holiday visitors from within the South West comprise 95% of the total (Table 1). This finding highlights the potential for attracting visitors from outside the region, but recognises that greater promotion of the site will be essential in order for the site to meet this objective.

The second area examined by the report identified that offroad cycling at Haldon Forest Park makes a positive economic contribution to the tourism and leisure economy, generating £0.7 million in 2012. From a tourism perspective, the challenge for the future is to increase the proportion of staying visitors (high spending visitors) from outside the region, thereby reducing the economic reliance on internal day and holiday visitors. Analysis of visitor group onsite expenditure showed that external holiday visitors spent 1.6 times more than internal holiday visitors.

The final section presented a profile of off-road cycling visitors at Haldon Forest Park. This revealed that the site attracts six groups of off-road cyclists (Figure 3). All groups were found to support the economic viability of the site, purchasing both obligatory and discretionary items. Within these groups, the Non-bike Owners were found to be the highest spending cluster. Among the remaining clusters, the ‘active’ groups spend more than the less active groups. This is important because these clusters not only visit frequently, they also contribute more economically. This finding highlights the importance of understanding the different visitor groups, and balancing the needs of these consumers when considering any future site changes.

Recommendations On the basis of this research, the following recommendations are made with regard to the future development of off-road cycling at Haldon Forest Park. i. Increase site promotion to realise the tourism potential from external holiday visitors.

This study highlights the latent potential for attracting external holiday visitors to Haldon Forest Park. It is recommended that future promotion of the site addresses this issue, with the aim of reducing the economic reliance on internal day and holiday visitors, and maximising the value of the site as a regional tourism attractor. ii. Develop promotional activities to capitalise on the yearround tourism opportunities provided by off-road cycling.

Holiday visitors were identified in three out of the four seasons (the exception being winter). As a result, off-road cycling provides tourism businesses, especially those connected to nature and the outdoors, with an opportunity to extend their tourism season beyond the summer months. iii. ‘Maintain to sustain’ current visitation and return rates.

The popularity of off-road cycling at Haldon Forest Park is evidenced by the large volume of annual visitors (33,157), and the high intended rates of return for day and holiday visitors. To sustain this demand, emphasis should be placed on maintaining the trail infrastructure and onsite facilities to preserve the quality of experience. All tourist attractions need updating periodically to remain attractive and competitive. iv. Develop tailored approaches to meet the needs of different visitor sub-groups.

Haldon Forest Park was found to attract a broad range of offroad cyclists representing six visitor sub-groups. Although all groups were found to contribute to the economic viability of the site, they exhibit different visitation patterns, preferences, and expenditure characteristics. Any future development should recognise and cater for these varied consumer needs.

Pedal Power: an Analysis of the Economic Contribution of Off-road Cycling at Haldon Forest Park

References Hair, J., Anderson, R., Tatham, R., and Black, W. (1998) Multivariate Data Analysis, 5th edition, New Jersey: Prentice Hall.

Ormerod, N. (2014) An Examination of the Challenges of Capturing the Value of Adventurous Off-Road Cycling: A Perspective from South West England (PhD thesis, University of Exeter) Smith, E. (2010) Portrait of the South West, Office for National Statistics, [Online], Available: www.ons.gov.uk/ons/search/index.html?newquery= portrait+of+the+south+west [04 May 2013] South West Tourism Alliance (2008) The Value of Tourism to the South West Economy in 2008, [Online], Available: http://www.swtourismalliance.org.uk/documents/q/ category/finance-facts-figures-documents/value-of-tourismarchive/value-of-tourism-2008 [04 May 2013] Tym & Partners and Total Marketing Solutions (2006) ‘Developing Off-road Cycling in Woodlands in the South West’ [Online], Available: www.silvanustrust.org.uk/uploads/documents/ Woodland%20Renaissance/12.15.06%20Woodland%20 Cycling%20Final%20Report.pdf [20 Feb 2013] Visit South West, (n.d.) Your official guide to the South West, [Online], Available: www.visitsouthwest.co.uk [10 Oct 13]

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