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Register for news updatesLaunch of the Australian Cycling Economy Report from Parliament House
A perennial problem for advocates of new rail trail developments and management committees looking for data to use in promotional plans is lack of hard economic benefits data. Visitor counters can provide some numbers for existing trails but measuring dollar values has been a recurring frustration.
At Parliament House in Canberra on Wednesday 20 October a group of enthusiastic politicians, led by the Federal Treasurer Josh Frydenberg, and representatives of the bicycle industry unveiled a report which provides useful facts and figures that can be used to underline the significance of bicycling visitors using rail trails.
Titled the “Australian Cycling Economy 2021 Report“, initiated by We Ride Australia, an arm of the bicycle industry, and delivered by Ernst & Young, it is a study estimating the economic contribution of the cycling economy to Australia in 2020. The study noted that cycling’s input into the Australian economy was $6.3B in 2020 whilst supporting 34,295 FTE jobs. 1.7M bicycles were purchased in 2020 with an estimated 5.8M Australians having spent money on cycling products last year.
This nineteen page report shines a new light on the significance of bicycle use in Australia as a substantial component of the national economy, and its significance for sport, recreation, transport and a contributor to the tourism sector. This Australian Cycling Economy Report lays out the hard facts and it makes very interesting reading.
Bicycle use on rail trails has always been the major component of all visitor traffic and based on this research it will continue to be so and grow into the future.
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2 comments on “Launch of the Australian Cycling Economy Report from Parliament House”
Been trying for years to get a trail between Swan Hill and Lake Boga, have been told by a couple of ex councilors that the money is there is the money there but at all council votes to build it, they have voted it down. Built a multi million dollar drag strip that can't be used because it is to dangerous. So what is happening to the money that is already there for the bike trail??
Great news!