Welcome to the award winning Ilkley Chat!

Which roads will be closed?

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Thursday 3 May

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• Cowpasture Road, Ilkley from the roundabout at Ben Rhydding Road all the way through to Moor Lane at Burley Woodhead will be closed from 10pm. Access for residents will be maintained, however you will need to plan your route as no access will be available between the Cow and Calf Hotel and Cow and Calf Café on Hangingstone Road.

• Denton Bridge will be closed from 9pm.

• Due to the limited available space at the finish there will be no parking on Moor Road as this area will be needed for official vehicles and emergency services etc.

 

Friday 4 May

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These will be in place to facilitate the finish of the race and to enable the 'event build'. From 5am to 10pm the following roads will be closed:

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• The Grove (Whilst the race doesn’t travel along The Grove, this area will be a Fan Zone, details further down the page)

• Cowpasture Road (remaining length)

• Brook Street

• Springs Lane (from Tesco to Station Road)

• Station Road

• Keighley Road (green lane over the moor)

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It is expected that the A65 junction with New Brook Street and Brook Street will be closed between 11.50am and 1.10pm (women's race) and 5.20pm and 6.30pm (men's race), the sponsor caravan will come through before the men's race so the road will be closed for this.. 

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Apart from the above, roads on the route (New Brook Street & Denton Road) will be subject to a rolling road closure of around 40 minutes as the races come through.

 

There will be no signposting for diversion routes as the closures are temporary.

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What about public transport?

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The bus station in Ilkley, located on Station Road, will not be in operation due to the road closure. As a result the bus station will be relocated to Grove Road (opposite the memorial garden). Bus operators will be running normally services throughout the race events,  however some routes will change slightly due to the road closures.

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62 Keighley – Silsden – Addingham - Ilkley - Otley

For services towards Addingham, Silsden and Keighley From bus stop 45014159 on Skipton road or temporary stop on Leeds Road.

For services towards Otley

From bus stop number 45014160 Skipton Road or 45014130 on Wheatley Lane.

74A Dales Service

For services towards Grassington,

From bus stop 45014159 on Skipton road or temporary stop on Grove Road.

962 Ilkley – Otley Circular

Services will terminate and pick up from bus stop 45026607 at Booths Supermarket on Lower Wellington Road.

X52 Harrogate - Otley - Ilkley

Service will terminate and pick up from bus stop 45014132 Valley Drive in Ben Rhydding. Not serving Ilkley Town Centre.

X84 Skipton – Ilkley – Otley – Leeds

For services towards Otley and Leeds

From bus stop number 45014151 on Leeds Road or 45014138 on Valley Drive.

For services towards Addingham and Skipton

From bus stop number 45014159 Skipton Road

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Yournextbus, journey planner and smartphone apps may not show details of any diversions or changes shown on this notice. Please bear this in mind when planning for your journey.
For information please visit wymetro.com or call MetroLine on 0113 245 7676, open daily between 0700 and 2200

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Trains will continue with their usual timetables throughout the day.

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What about parking?

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Residents and visitors to the area are requested to park their vehicles off the main race route on the race day, vehicles may be towed away.

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In addition, there will also be parking restrictions in place on Little Lane, Valley Drive, Victoria Avenue and The Grove.

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Car parking will be available on the playing fields on New Brook Street and well as the normal car parks (except Lido & Ilkley railway station car parks) and street parking (those without restrictions.)

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What do I need to know about the Cow and Calf finish ?

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Spectators planning to watch the finishes of the races at the Cow and Calf Rocks are advised that only pedestrians and cyclists will be able to access the finish area. The finish is approximately 1.5 miles walk or cycle up a steep hill from the town centre. There will be no access for public vehicles.

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Because the Tour de Yorkshire takes place at a critical breeding time for protected birds and animals there will be no public access to the top of the Cow and Calf Rocks and Quarry on Ilkley Moor throughout the day.

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Spectators are also being advised to stick to the main paths and avoid walking through vegetated areas, keep dogs on leads and do not allow them to disturb nesting birds or livestock, take care with cigarettes and matches to avoid the risk of wildfire, stay away from areas that are fenced off, such as carved rock monuments, breeding areas and cliff and quarry edges.

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What else is being organised on the day?

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The Grove Fan Zone will let cycling fans watch all the action unfold on a big screen. Also enjoy, the Wonder Wheelers – interactive participation activity on different kinds of bikes, Food and Drink stalls including Lishman's BBQ, Arts and crafts tent for children, Face painting, Street performers/circus skills, Batak, Smoothie bikes, Static bike sprint races, Adaptive Cycling Costume Animation activity – Ilkley Dander.  The Bandstand will host music entertainment with, Steel band, Rock choir and Acoustic performers.

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​Adventure Play at Ilkley Riverside Memorial Gardens.  All the activities are free and are being provided by Bradford Council’s Community Play and Activities Development Service..  There will be a wide range of exciting activities for children of all ages, including the Spider Mountain, Bungee Trampolines, Climbing Tower, Ultimate Wipeout, Inflatable Camouflaged Assault Course, Tots De Luxe Play Zone, Face Painting, Arts & Crafts and lots more!  Open 11am - 6pm.

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The Cow & Calf pub will be having an outside bar and various children rides and slides to raise money for the Yorkshire Air Ambulance.

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The Black Hat is hosting a Tour de Yorkshire Festival with various street food stalls, entertainment and outside bar available from 12pm.

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The Best Western Plus Craiglands Hotel 'Cycle, BBQ and Toast the Tour de Yorkshire' between 12-6pm.

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The Moody Cow on New Brook Street will have BBQ from 11am serving the finest meats and burgers until early evening.  Bar open all day with viewing areas inside and out.

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Ilkley Manor House are holding a Cycling Event with a new exhibition about the history of cycling, plus lots of family activities. There will be great coffee and snacks to help e-fuel tired cyclists too! 10.30am until 4pm.

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Will the race be shown on TV?

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Yes live coverage can be found on ITV4 Friday at 8:55-12:45 and 14:15-18:30 - freeview 24, Sky 120, Freesat 117, Virgin 118/278 (HD).

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Local news services, Look North and Calendar are both expected to be reporting from the Cow & Calf finish.

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Anything else!

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Bradford Council have set up this webpage with further information and contact details.

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Details of road closures in the Leeds district can be found here.

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Details of road closures in North Yorkshire can be found here.

 

Ilkley Grammar School and Moorfield School are closed for the day.

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The fair for Ilkley Carnival will begin as usual on East Holmes Field on Friday 4 May at 6pm.

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Ilkley Lido will be closed throughout the event and the car park will be also be closed to public parking, team vehicles will be parked here.

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Ilkley Rugby Club will be used for press conferences.

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Visit the Tour de Yorkshire website for more information about the 4 day event: letour.yorkshire.com

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We'll update the local information here as we get it - keep an eye on our Facebook page that weekend for the latest news.