New event plans with even more service for visitors of the Grand Départ Düsseldorf 2017

Final spurt for the Grand Départ Düsseldorf 2017, with up to a million visitors expected in the state capital. And there’s plenty to discover that’s not right on the route. To make planning and orientation easier for the visitors, the state capital Düsseldorf has therefore published new event plans with even more service.

Team presentation on 29 June 2017
The team presentation on 29 June 2017 starts at 6 pm with the European anthem at Burgplatz. From 6.30 pm (until around 8 pm), the 198 cyclists of the Tour de France will present themselves on the stage there.

As the map shows, they ride from Burgplatz to Marktplatz, through Rheinstraße and then along Rheinufer to Johannes-Rau-Platz, to greet the fans in Düsseldorf.

At Marktplatz, Grabbeplatz, Johannes-Rau-Platz and Kö-Bogen, spectators can follow the team presentation live on LED screens - marked on the map as an "eye". Rheinufer is also a good place to view from, as the cyclists can be seen for a long time here, and the sports area of the Bundeswehr provides for additional entertainment. What’s more, catering stands will be set up.

1st stage on 1 July 2017
The 1st stage will take place from 3.15 pm as individual time trials over 14 kilometres through Düsseldorf’s city zone.

The cyclists start at the Düsseldorf trade fair and then ride along the Rheinufer towards the old town. They race over the Oberkassel bridge to Oberkassel on the left bank of the Rhine and from there over the Rheinknie bridge towards the city centre. Then via Königsallee onto Heinrich-Heine-Allee, past the Deutsche Oper and back to Rheinufer. The finishing stretch of 3.3 kilometres takes them along the Rhine and back to the trade fair.

At nine locations in the extended city centre, visitors can watch live broadcasts of the Tour de France on large LED screens (symbol "eye"). Six side event and sports areas offer an attractive programme with music and action. In addition to the underground stations, the map also shows the locations of more than 20 additional bicycle parking facilities with 30,000 bicycle parking spaces, the catering areas, medical services, bridges and level access crossings.

To help the pedestrians with orientation, the public areas along the route are divided into six coloured zones and - as can be seen on the map - marked in different colours:

• Trade fair / start-finish: yellow
• Rheinpark: red
• Oberkassel: green
• Landtag: purple
• Königsallee: blue
• Old town: orange

This colour coding can be found on the day of the event on pedestrian maps and signposts which lead to important points such as the supporting programme or live broadcasts in the respective zone.

2nd stage on 2 July 2017
The eight-kilometre "neutral zone" (i.e. without time measurement) of the 2nd stage starts at Burgplatz at 12.03 am. At the "Living Bridge", which spans the harbour basin, the field stop before riding on through the city centre of Düsseldorf to the  official start in Fischerstraße. It is only then that the racing cyclists pick up full speed at 12.30 am.

After the first flat kilometres through the state capital, they head off up to the racecourse. From Grafenberg, the route leads through Gerresheim and into the town of Erkrath. The 2nd stage of the Tour de France 2017 then winds through the Neanderthal valley up to Mettmann, before the cyclists cross through Ratingen from where they return to Düsseldorf. They then cross the Rhine via the Theodor-Heuss-Bridge, before leaving the Düsseldorf city area after 57 kilometres at around 1.45 pm. The route continues through the district Rhein-Kreis Neuss, Meerbusch, Neuss, Kaarst, Korschenbroich, Mönchengladbach, Kreis Heinsberg, Kreis Düren, Jülich, Titz, Aldenhoven, the district of Aachen with Alsdorf and Würselen and the cathedral city of Aachen and on to the Belgian town of Liège.

For sporting reasons, the Tour operator A.S.O. has again slightly changed the neutral zone of the 2nd stage. The field starts off neutralised from Burgplatz and rolls over Marktplatz, past the town hall, then onto Berger Straße and then, as planned, over Carlsplatz and Maxplatz in the direction of Rheinufer and the MedienHafen. In addition, the administration of the province of Liège has decided to move the finish line from Boulevard d'Avroy to the bank of the Meuse at the Quai des Ardennes. Due to these changes, the 2nd stage is now 203.5 kilometres long (previously 206). Due to the shortening, the starting time on Sunday, 2 July has also changed from 12.00 am to 12.03 am. These maps have therefore been adapted accordingly.

The map for the extended city centre of Düsseldorf has also been supplemented to include service information. On 2 July, the visitors can also watch live broadcasts of the Tour de France on LED screens at seven locations – also after the field has left the city zone of Düsseldorf. Four event areas also offer an attractive programme with music and action. And additional bike parking facilities are, of course, also available on this day.

Since the second stage is a race over 203.5 kilometres and is not - as in the individual time trials on the day before - concentrated around the extended inner city, the colour guidance system for pedestrians is not applied on this day.

Further information on disabled access is to follow
In addition, the event maps of the 1st and 2nd stages already show the locations of the platforms for wheelchair users and the barrier-free parking spaces. Comprehensive information on all services for your barrier-free visit of the Grand Départ will be provided in the coming week.