A FORMER primary school teacher has spotted a business opportunity helping tourists power around the countryside.

Realising the rolling hills prove too much for some, Peter Hill came up with the idea for Cotswold Electric Bike Tours.

The £2,000 battery-powered bicycles allow sightseers to cruise up a hill in comfort and enjoy the view from the top without breaking a sweat.

And the eight-strong fleet of e-bikes are proving popular with visitors from the USA, Canada, Singapore, Switzerland, Belgium, Israel, Germany, Belgium, Brazil and Australia.

Mr Hill’s oldest customer so far is a 75-year-old from Hamburg who took four guided tours.

With a maximum speed of 15.5 mph, three power settings and a battery life of 55 miles, the bikes might not win a Grand Prix but they are perfect for tackling hills.

Mr Hill explained: "Everyone is blown away by the stunning scenery and villages tucked away in the hidden back roads and the ease with which my e-bikes magically make the hills disappear.

"You can just fly up even the steepest slopes."

Mr Hill is one of many small firms tapping into Oxfordshire’s thriving tourism economy.

According to figures from Oxfordshire Local Enterprise Partnership’s Strategic Investment Plan published last month, Oxfordshire attracts just under 27 million visitors a year.

Tourists spend £1.86bn in the local economy and 32,000 people are employed in the sector, which is growing by three per cent a year.

One in 10 jobs across Oxfordshire is linked to tourism, according to figures from VisitBritain 2015 and Tourism South East.

Kingham-based Mr Hill, who has a passion for local history and wildlife, also runs Windrush Cycle Tours.

Three years ago during school holidays, he started offering traditional cycling breaks with ready-made routes, maps and accommodation.

And that first business provided the inspiration for the second.

He explained: "People kept saying ‘Can I have an electric bike to go up the hills, please?’.

"That’s what gave me the idea to launch Cotswold Electric Bike Tours."

A six-hour e-bike tour costs £75 per person, or £25 for an hour-long session.

Customers are often met at stations with direct routes to London, such as Moreton-in-Marsh,

A favourite 30-mile tour starts in Burford, follows the River Windrush to North Leach via Bibury, stopping for a pub lunch before returning via the Coln Valley.

Keen cyclist Mr Hill, who taught at Freeland primary school and is a member of the North Cotswold Cycling Club, left his job earlier this year, to focus on both businesses.

He added: "We have 810-square miles of Cotswolds, an area of outstanding natural beauty, on our doorstep.

"Why not make the most of it?"