Industry voices grave concerns for Wales’ mountain bike trails

A threat to the future of Wales’ mountain bike trails – among the jewels in the UK’s MTB facilities – has been identified, with obvious implications for bike shops, suppliers and brands in the MTB sector.

A number of industry voices have come together to highlight concerns about the Natural Resources Wales’ budget and staffing cuts which look set to affect all of NRW’s mountain bike trails, and its impact on NRW’s ability to fulfil its Wild Trails Strategy which seeks to engage volunteer groups to take on stewardship of community-built trails – something a previous CIN story tackled here.

As has been widely reported, the future of three of NRW’s visitor centres – including Coed Y Brenin – have been thrown into some doubt, with the NRW set to make temporary closures while it finds private commercial partners to take on their running, however long that might take.

The situation has seen an unprecedented combination of MTB voices come together, including Cycling UK, Beicio Cymru (formerly Welsh Cycling), the UK MTB Trail Alliance, Mountain Bike Wales and the Wales Adventure Tourism Organisation (WATO), along with over 90 other groups, organisations and businesses from across the Welsh mountain bike sector. The assembled group have united to send a letter to Huw Irranca-Davies MS, Deputy First Minister and Cabinet Secretary for Climate Change and Rural Affairs (who is the Welsh Government’s Minister responsible for Natural Resources Wales).

They’ve collectively outlined their concerns about the proposed cuts to NRW’s access and recreation budgets, which would have a devastating impact on Wales’ mountain bike trail network, impacting riders, communities and businesses across Wales. They’ve also outlined five asks of the Welsh Government. Those include:

1. A sustainable, meaningful and ongoing investment in maintaining and developing NRW’s existing mountain bike trails.
2. NRW to materially improve its approach to working with volunteer groups, so that they can help maintain and develop Wales’ mountain bike trails.
3. To ensure that either NRW’s visitor centres are not closed, or that the tender and contract processes for them are expedited so they are closed only for a very short time.
4. NRW properly consider local community groups as candidate partners to take on the running of these centres.
5. That the Access Reform Programme be unfrozen, prioritised and included within the current Programme for Government.

The signatories (the full letter is available to read online) underline the value of the MTB sector to Wales. A Welsh Government-funded report from 2023 found that a total net impact from trips associated with mountain biking in Wales to be £182 million annually with 4,603 jobs supported.

Robin Grant, Chair, UK MTB Trail Alliance, said: “It’s amazing to see how Wales’ mountain bike community have come together to voice their concerns about NRW’s cuts and the devastating effect they would have on riders, communities and businesses across Wales. Trails in Wales, and across the UK, face a crisis, with little to no money for ongoing maintenance or improvement. Volunteer groups are primed to help, but NRW and other public sector bodies need to radically simplify the way they work with volunteers to allow this to happen. We call on the Welsh Government to reconsider, and to implement our five asks.”

Robbie George, Director of Development & Events, Beicio Cymru, added: “We’re proud to unite with stakeholders across Wales to address the critical issue of NRW cuts and their impact on outdoor recreation. Our community is deeply concerned about the neglect of managed trails and delays in working with volunteer groups. Wales, a premier destination for mountain biking, is at risk of losing this status. The economic and health benefits of mountain biking are clear, and we call on the government to act swiftly to support the sector, preserving our trails and outdoor spaces for future generations.”

The NRW is to reduce costs to the tune of £13 million. A board meeting in the final days of September 2024 will review input from various stakeholders. The NRW previously stated it is reviewing its work to prioritise the activities it undertakes, reflecting its statutory duties: “The level of resource committed to some activities will scale back including outdoor access and recreation”.

Meanwhile, interested parties may note that the UK MTB Trail Alliance is running a GoFundMe campaign, which aims to raise £10,000 to help cover its year-one costs. It is volunteer-run, with no salaries, but it spends money on membership fees for professional bodies in order to lobby and influence decision makers, and other admin costs.

Image by Photo Mix from Pixabay