Otley market traders say Tour De Yorkshire will cost them money
Market traders in Otley have been telling Radio Aire that they're going to lose money when the Tour De Yorkshire goes through the town.
Market traders in Otley have been telling Radio Aire that they're going to lose money when the Tour de Yorkshire goes through the town.
Stage 2 of the mens race and the womens event both start there on Saturday, but the town's 300-year-old market is going to have to close.
Sonya Johnson runs one of the stalls in the market:
“It’s coming up to bank holiday, a busy time of the year and it’s getting cancelled because of this bike race. Last year we could stand on the street but this year we are not being given the option to do that, so it’s not benefitting us at all. All the bad weather we’ve had to put up with, it’s been hard enough and we just think it’s really unfair.”
Fellow trader Michelle Firth says some businesses could lose a fortune:
“Day to day it varies, it just depends, but with it being a Bank Holiday weekend we get lots more people in. But if you add up every stall, like the greengrocers, they’ll be losing thousands.”
Well Otley Town Council have told us that the decision is unfortunate, but it's due to health and safety concerns.