Arriva North West Offer Liverpool ½ Marathon Runners Free Bus Travel On Race Day
Photos with thanks to BTR Liverpool.

THE 27th Annual BTR Liverpool Skyline ½ Marathon takes place in less than 2 weeks; with over 3,000 runners gearing up for this year's race. To mark the countdown until thousands of runners descend on the City for the race, on Sunday, 15 March 2020, transport provider Arriva North West has announced it is offering participants free bus travel on race day to help runners reduce their carbon footprint.  This is the latest move from race organiser BTR Liverpool, in a bid to make its portfolio of races more green and environmentally friendly.

The 13.1½ marathon event also includes a 10 Mile Road Race, which is being staged for the 5th consecutive year. Both races start at 9am. Both races have a grandstand start and finish line area on the iconic Liverpool Waterfront at Pier Head Liverpool, part of the UNESCO World Heritage Site. Runners and spectators will gather under the gaze of the Liver Birds for the annual race set against iconic City backdrop, the 3 Graces; Royal Liver Building, Cunard Building, and Port Of Liverpool Building. Arriva North West is supporting the BTR Liverpool Skyline ½ Marathon and BTR 10 Mile Road Race with free bus travel throughout the day.

Race participants can travel on the Arriva bus network across Merseyside throughout the day free of charge. To claim complimentary bus travel into the City Centre on the morning of the race, runners must be wearing their race number. Returning home, runners must show their finishers' race medal. There is no cut off travel time post race. Arriva North West has also supported the BTR Liverpool Santa Dash for the past 3 years, with complimentary travel for Santas.

Lisa Pearson, Head of Marketing for Arriva North West and Wales, commented:- "We're really excited to be able to offer free travel across the Merseyside network for those participating in the BTR Liverpool Skyline ½ Marathon and BTR 10 Mile Road Race, on Sunday, 15 March 2020. Using the bus and helping customers to reduce their carbon footprints is something we're incredibly passionate about. We know that one double decker can take 75 cars off the road, and encouraging people to use more sustainable forms of transport is important. We've supported the BTR Liverpool Santa Dash for three years now so we're thrilled to further our partnership with BTR through another big race event. We look forward to welcoming BTR runners on our Arriva buses across Merseyside on race day; we wish everyone good luck."

The support from Arriva North West supports BTR Liverpool's commitment to going green and reducing race waste. BTR is fully committed to continuing to find ways to reduce single use plastic in its race events.  BTR Liverpool is the leading independent organisation for creating, managing and delivering headline race events across Liverpool City Region. Its growing portfolio also includes the:- BTR Mersey Tunnel 10K; BTR Liverpool Santa Dash; BTR Port Sunlight 5K and 10K; and 52-mile BTR Tour Of Merseyside. Post race refreshments are now handed to runners instead of being provided in goody bags; therefore reducing the amount of plastic bags used throughout the year by almost 40,000. Protective plastic pockets for medals are also being phased out.

BTR Race Director Alan Rothwell commented:- "The feedback we received from Santas using Arriva buses on Santa Dash day was nothing short of glowing, so we're delighted to once again have Arriva North West on board. We are grateful for their support and we're sure their generous travel offer will help to make people's journey on race morning more pleasurable and stress free. BTR is fully committed to recycling, reducing single use plastic, and reducing overall race event waste in every way possible. We stopped using single use plastic goody bags two years ago, and we've now requested our suppliers wrap our medals in sustainable, biodegradable tissue paper as opposed to the usual plastic pockets. Small steps can make a huge collective difference, and this is something we all need to be mindful about."

During its 27 year existence, the Liverpool ½ Marathon event has firmly established itself as the North West's premier road race event. To further highlight its domestic and international appeal, this year's event has been rebranded to the Liverpool Skyline ½ Marathon to celebrate the host destination's strong tourism offer; with runners taking part to see the City on foot. The race course features some of Liverpool's most famous sights including Liverpool Cathedral, Royal Albert Dock, Museum Of Liverpool, and Sefton Park. This year, overseas runners pulling on their running shoes to take part will be visiting from:- Argentina, Austria, Belgium, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, Ireland, Isle Of Man, Israel, Italy, Jersey, Malta, Morocco, Netherlands, Norway, Russia, South Africa, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, Thailand, and the United States of America.

Online entries are still available. For full details visit:- BTRLiverpool.Com.

Calling all apprentices and students in Liverpool

WORLDSKILLS UK, the education and skills charity, is looking for talented people from across Liverpool to prove they are the UK's best. The WorldSkills UK Competitions are run in over 70 different skills across Engineering, Construction, Digital, Health and Hospitality. Putting apprentices' and students' practical skills, knowledge and employability attributes to the test in a competitive environment, 90% of those who entered the competitions in 2019 said they had seen improvements in their career prospects after taking part. WorldSkills UK Competitions are designed by industry experts and are free to enter.  Each successful entrant that makes it through the National Qualifiers, taking place between April and June 2020, will proudly represent Liverpool in the National Finals at WorldSkills UK LIVE, at the NEC Birmingham. Attracting over 70,000 visitors, WorldSkills UK LIVE is the largest skills, apprenticeships and careers event which takes place from 19 November to  21 November 2020.  Ben Blackledge, Deputy Chief Executive, WorldSkills UK said:- "We are looking for apprentices and students throughout Liverpool to demonstrate their skills and show why they are the best in the UK. Our competitions are proven to enhance a young person's technical and employability skills, giving them the confidence to excel in their chosen career."  Celebrating the best of UK talent, national and even global recognition could await entrants as WorldSkills UK will invite those apprentices and students who excel in the 2020 Competitions to join its talent development programme for the international WorldSkills Competition in 2023. Known as the 'skills Olympics,' WorldSkills takes place every two years and sees over 1000 apprentices and students from around the world with the aim of being named the world's best. Registration for WorldSkills UK Competitions 2020 have now opened and will close on 2 April 2020.  To register please visit:-  WorldSkillsUK.Org.