British cyclists are some of fastest in the world, 2016 Strava stats reveal

Year-end statistics produced by social network for athletes Strava give insight into what its average user has achieved in 2016. How do you compare?
Nigel Wynn

Year-end statistics published by Strava have revealed that British cyclists are some of the fastest in the world.

A total of 161 million bike rides were uploaded to the ‘social network for athletes‘ in 2016, 27.4 million of which originated form the UK, giving a vast pool of data.

>> Struggling to get to the shops try 6 issues of Cycling Weekly magazine for just £6 delivered to your door <<

Strava has calculated the average speed for each nation, with British male riders producing the second-fastest average speed behind riders in the Netherlands. Dutch riders have a slight advantage given the flatter terrain, and clocked an average speed of 26.92kmh (16.72mph) to UK riders’ 25.61kmh (15.9mph).

Average speed on Strava: Global cycling

Country Average Speed Male Country Average Speed Female
Holland 26.92 km/h Holland 21.36 km/h
UK 25.61 km/h France 20.74 km/h
France 24.36 km/h USA 20.51 km/h
USA 24.35 km/h Germany 19.94 km/h
Germany 23.28 km/h Spain 19.86 km/h
Spain 22.31 km/h UK 19.84 km/h

That puts the Netherlands and UK riders ahead of cyclists from France, USA, Germany and Spain.

British female riders were sixth on the table of global average speeds, with 19.84kmh (12.32mph).

In terms of distance, British male cyclists recorded an average ride distance of 41km (25.47 miles), with women posting an average of 34km (21.1 miles).

Average ride stats for UK cyclists from Strava for 2016

Average ride stats for UK cyclists from Strava for 2016

The fastest place in the UK was Ards in Northern Ireland, with riders averaging 25.4kmh (15.78mph) for men and women together.

The British location producing the hilliest rides was Merthyr Tydfil in Wales, with an average of 645 metres (2116 feet) of climbing logged per ride.

The most popular day for a bike ride in the UK in 2016 was Sunday May 8, which Strava explains was unseasonably warm and sunny. Globally, Sunday September 11 was the day with most rides uploaded.

The most ridden segment in the UK was Richmond Gate Roundabout to Queen’s Road Car Park in London, with 985,569 attempts. All of the top 10 most ridden segments are in London and the south-east.

Most ridden UK Strava segments during 2016

Most ridden UK Strava segments during 2016

Strava also reports that an average of 223,376 rides are recorded as a ‘commute’ every week in the UK. Although that’s an average, the figure fluctuates depending on the season, with an 87 per cent increase in commuting during the summer months.

And finally, there were 1.3 billion kudos given to other people’s rides during the year.