Report shows Tarka Trail contributes nearly £4million each year to the Biosphere's economy

19/1/2016

A report for Devon County Council published at the end of 2015 shows the huge economic contribution to the economy of three of the county's off-road cycling and walking trails:

Drake’s Trail, from Tavistock to Plymouth (incorporating the Plym Valley Trail
Exe Estuary Trail, from Exeter to Exmouth and Dawlish Warren
The Tarka Trail, from Barnstaple to Braunton and Meeth.

The tourism-related expenditure calculated for all three Trails was £13.4million and they were shown to support 200 full time jobs.

The expenditure for the Tarka Trail alone is shown to be £3.7million with 56 full time jobs supported.

These figures look set to increase, as between 2012-14 the average increase in cycle traffic was 14% and this shows little sign of slowing. 2014 figures show cycle counters on the Tarka Trail recorded just over 650,000 passes in a single year.