RideLondon and Cycling Events

Published 28 September 2026 · By the Guide to London editorial team · Editor: Terje Moy

RideLondon no longer happens. London Marathon Events announced on 10 February 2026 that it has been placed on indefinite pause, and the tenth and last edition was held in May 2024. There is nothing to enter, and no weekend when the roads close for cyclists. The mass ride that does still exist is the London to Brighton Bike Ride, on Sunday 20 June 2027, with the ballot open now.

This matters because RideLondon is still all over the internet. Travel guides list a July weekend of closed roads, tour operators sell packages around it, and hotel pages warn about traffic. All of that is out of date. If you came here to enter a closed-road ride in London, the honest answer is that the event you are thinking of has stopped.

What follows is what actually exists: one large mass ride, a world-class velodrome you can ride on yourself, and a city that is easier to cycle across than most visitors expect. Our guide to cycling in London covers the everyday side.

What happened to RideLondon

RideLondon began in 2013 as a legacy of the 2012 Olympics, originally in partnership with Surrey County Council, and ran annually until 2019. It paused for the pandemic in 2020 and 2021, returned in 2022 in a new form based in Essex rather than Surrey, and held its tenth and final edition in May 2024.

In February 2026 the organiser confirmed the pause, citing operational and financial considerations, and said the event would not continue in its current format. Its own figures for the ten editions are worth recording: more than 500,000 people took part in the mass participation rides, and the event raised over £85 million for charity. The organiser says future effort will go into expanding access to cycling and promoting active travel rather than into the event.

Whether something replaces it is not known. If a closed-road London ride returns, the organiser's own events pages are where it will be announced, and there is no point watching third-party listings sites, which are still selling the old one.

The London to Brighton Bike Ride, which is the real answer

This is now the big one, and it is older than RideLondon ever was: the British Heart Foundation calls the 2027 edition the 50th and describes it as Europe's oldest charity bike ride. It runs on Sunday 20 June 2027, from Clapham Common in south London to Brighton seafront, 54 miles or 86.9 kilometres, and most of the route is on closed, traffic-free roads.

Entry is £40 to £55, and there are two ways in. The ballot is open now and allocates places at random. Alternatively you can skip the ballot by signing up to ride for the charity or one of its partners, which guarantees a place immediately and comes with a discounted entry fee in exchange for committing to a minimum fundraising target.

Start times are staggered every 25 minutes between 06:00 and 09:00, allocated about a month before the ride on the basis of the finish time you estimate when you register, so riders of similar pace set off together. The organiser provides rest stops with refreshments, mechanics and medical support, and puts marshals it calls Ride Rangers in every wave. It is explicitly not a race.

Getting back is a real consideration: several thousand people and their bikes all want to leave Brighton on the same Sunday evening, and train operators restrict bikes at busy times. Our guide to taking a bike on London transport explains the rules, and the Brighton day trip guide covers the trains and what to do if you stay the night, which for this ride is the better plan. Clapham Common itself is described in our guide to Clapham Common and Brockwell Park.

Track racing, and riding the Olympic velodrome yourself

The best cycling spectating in London is indoors. Lee Valley VeloPark in Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park is the 2012 Olympic velodrome, it still holds racing, and it also lets the public ride the boards on taster sessions with a coach and a hired track bike. Our guide to the Lee Valley VeloPark gives the prices, what a family of four pays, what the taster session involves hour by hour, and what happens on the outdoor BMX track and road circuit in bad weather.

London's other track is Herne Hill Velodrome in the south, an outdoor track that held the cycling at the 1948 Olympics and is still in club use, with sessions for adults and children. It is a different experience from the covered Olympic bowl: slower banking, open air, and a strong local club culture. Our guide to Herne Hill and Dulwich covers the area around it.

Criteriums and city-centre racing

Short circuit races round closed city blocks, criteriums, are the most watchable form of bike racing and London has had several over the years. They come and go with sponsorship, and we could not confirm a scheduled London criterium for 2027 from an organiser's own site. The place to check is the national governing body's race calendar rather than a listings magazine, because a criterium is often confirmed only two or three months ahead.

The same caution applies to professional road racing. The women's professional race that used to run alongside RideLondon in central London went with it. If a stage of a national tour finishes in London, it will be announced by the race organiser, and free roadside spectating is the norm.

What closes London's roads now

If you are not riding and simply want to know what will disrupt your day, the answer is no longer a bike event. The big road closure in London is the London Marathon, which in 2027 runs over two days for the first and only time, on Saturday 24 and Sunday 25 April. State occasions close Whitehall and the Mall for a morning at a time, as our guide to the State Opening of Parliament explains.

For the London to Brighton ride, the closures are in south London early on a Sunday morning and then in Surrey and Sussex, not in the centre. Unless you are staying near Clapham Common, you will not notice it.

Riding in London yourself, which is easier than it looks

For most visitors the useful version of a cycling event is a morning on a bike. Santander Cycles cost £1.65 for up to 30 minutes on a pedal bike and £3 per 30 minutes on an e-bike, with a day pass from £3.50 giving unlimited 60-minute rides over 24 hours, and there are around 800 docking stations. Our guide to hiring a Santander bike explains the terminal, the app and the charges, including the fact that e-bikes cannot be hired at the docking-station terminal.

The traffic-free riding is better than the reputation suggests: the Thames towpaths, the Olympic Park, the Regent's Canal and the loop road in Richmond Park, which is the closest thing London has to a training circuit. Our notes on e-scooters and e-bikes in London cover the rental fleets and the rules, which differ between the two.

If you want a target to train for

With RideLondon gone, the realistic calendar for a visitor is short. The London to Brighton ride in June is the one large closed-road day. Sportives around the Home Counties run from spring to autumn and are entered directly with their organisers. And if a long organised ride is not the point, an equivalent day out on foot exists in our guide to running routes in London, and June's wider calendar is in London in June.

Frequently asked questions

Is RideLondon still happening?

No. London Marathon Events announced on 10 February 2026 that RideLondon has been placed on indefinite pause following a strategic review, and that it will not continue in its current format. The tenth and most recent edition took place in May 2024. There is no 2027 event and no entry process.

What is the biggest cycling event in London now?

The British Heart Foundation's London to Brighton Bike Ride, which runs on Sunday 20 June 2027 for its 50th edition. It starts on Clapham Common, finishes on Brighton seafront, covers 54 miles mostly on closed roads, and costs £40 to £55 to enter.

How do I get a place in the London to Brighton Bike Ride?

Either through the ballot, which is open now and allocates places at random, or by committing to ride for the charity or one of its partners with a minimum fundraising target, which guarantees a place straight away and gives a discounted entry fee. Start times are allocated about a month before the ride.

Can visitors ride the Olympic velodrome in London?

Yes. Lee Valley VeloPark in Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park runs public taster sessions on the 2012 Olympic track, with a coach and a hired track bike included, as well as sessions on its outdoor BMX track and road circuit. It also hosts racing you can watch.

Do bike events close roads in central London?

Not any more. With RideLondon paused, the major road closures in London are for the London Marathon, which in 2027 runs over two days on 24 and 25 April, and for state ceremonial occasions. The London to Brighton ride closes roads in south London early on a Sunday morning and then outside the capital.

Sources

• London Marathon Events - RideLondon placed on indefinite pause, statement dated 10 February 2026 (checked September 2026)
• British Heart Foundation - London to Brighton Bike Ride 2027, date, distance, entry and start times (checked September 2026)
• Lee Valley Regional Park Authority - Lee Valley VeloPark (checked September 2026)
• Herne Hill Velodrome - sessions and calendar (checked September 2026)
• Transport for London - Santander Cycles prices (checked September 2026)
• London Marathon Events - TCS London Marathon 2027 dates (checked September 2026)