London turns down 2017 Tour de France start due to cost

London Mayor Boris Johnson has explained that London turned down the chance to host the 2017 Tour de France Grand Depart because it was too expensive.

BoJo says no-no to ASO over 2017 Tour de France Grand Depart Source: AAP

 

London Mayor Boris Johnson has explained that London turned down the chance to host the 2017 Tour de France Grand Depart because it was too expensive.

London had been chosen for to host the 2017 Grand Depart but declined the offer last week after deciding the $70m (£35m) cost of staging the event did not represent value for money.

City Mayor Boris Johnson said it was entirely his call.

“I had to take a very tough decision, obviously painful. In an ideal world, you know me, my policy is to have your cake and eat it.

“The difficulty was we had to make a choice – £35m is an awful lot to spend on a one-off event when you could put that money in to long-term projects. What people really want is safer cycling lanes.” He added: “For me it was a no brainer.”

“I will not waste cycling money on something that would only deliver very brief benefits.”

The 2017 Grand Depart will instead take place in Germany. The Tour de France last visited the UK in 2014, when the race began in Yorkshire.

Responses to the Mayor's decision have been mixed, with some people agreeing with the move and others calling foul.