THIS year's Tour de Yorkshire pumped nearly £60 million into the local economy.

Newly published independent research shows the race, which included a start stage from Otley, boosted everything from transport to the use of hotels, B&Bs and guest houses.

Sales of food, drink and souvenirs were also up in areas that hosted the tour, which was organised by Amaury Sport Organisation (ASO) and Welcome to Yorkshire and ran from April 29 to May 1.

The report by RepuCom also shows two million spectators lined the route this year and spent 20 per cent more than they did during the 2015 Tour.

Otley Town Council chairman, Councillor Ray Georgeson (Lib Dem, Danefield), welcomed the news.

He said: "I'm pleased to see the evidence from Welcome to Yorkshire of the economic benefits of this year's Tour de Yorkshire.

"It confirms what we hoped, that the balance is overwhelmingly positive in terns of benefit to the county of such events.

"We know Otley was remarkably busy on the day and, indeed, busier in the run-up. I acknowledge that disruption is inconvenient for some, nevertheless the wider beneficial impact, short and long term, is undoubtedly good for the town.

"Congratulations again to Welcome to Yorkshire, Leeds City Council and all the Otley community for a great team effort to showcase the town.

"The message from Otley Town Council is clear – come and see us again soon!"

MP Greg Mulholland (Lib Dem, Leeds North West) added: "These figures show what a huge success the Tour has been for Yorkshire, the economy and local businesses.

"The nearly £60 million boost to the local economy and the millions of people who watched the race, either in person or on TV, show the success of the race, and it was wonderful to have Otley as a start point and see it going through Pool-in-Wharfedale, Arthington and other local communities.

"A huge thanks to all at Welcome To Yorkshire and to ASO, who organised the race, and everyone locally, who helped make it happen."

The RepuCom report also shows the 2016 race was televised in 178 countries and watched by about 11.4 million viewers across Eurosport and ITV4 – double the amount in 2015.

There was als more than 130 hours of TV coverage broadcast globally – a 165 per cent increase on last year due to new broadcasters and longer coverage, even if the signal was broken for much of the women's race due to a technical fault.

Welcome to Yorkshire chief executive, Sir Gary Verity, said: “This is tremendous news for Yorkshire and the statistics speak for themselves – the public support for the Tour is overwhelming.

"Even in the face of some not-so-welcoming weather, these statistics show the Tour is rapidly going from strength to strength.

“The great people of the county continued to support the race in their droves, with more than two million people lining the route, spending 20 per cent more than last year, while TV viewing figures nearly doubled.

“This confirms the people of Yorkshire have really taken the Tour to their hearts and already we can’t wait for next year!”

The economic impact study, carried out by Leeds Beckett University, also showed most of the spectators were from Yorkshire (79 per cent) while 21 per cent came from elsewhere in the UK or abroad.