Putting the brakes on: impediments to the development of independent cycle tourism in Australia

Cycle tourism was identified in the Australian federal government’s 2003 Tourism White Paper as a niche market with potential for enhancing Australia’s competitiveness in the global tourism marketplace. However, if Australia is to establish itself as an internationally recognised cycle tourism destination, the three spheres of government must work together and take steps such as strategic planning, to improve the provision of infrastructure and amenities required by cycle tourists. Strategic planning requires a good knowledge of the needs of cycle tourists. However, at this time little systematic research has examined the efficacy of Australia to support this form of tourism. This paper reports the outcomes of an exploratory study which examined three factors currently considered impediments to the development of independent cycle tourism. Quantitative and qualitative evidence are presented to confirm that factors including road safety for cyclists, inadequate infrastructure, and difficulties associated with the carriage of bicycles on transport services, currently act as impediments to the development of independent cycle tourism in Australia. Recommendations are also made for government actions that should be undertaken to ameliorate these impediments.