Fines threatened in clampdown on ‘problematic parking’ of e-bikes in London

Transport for London (TfL) has threatened enforcement action, including fines, against e-bike sharing companies who fail to ensure their bikes are parked appropriately.

There are currently over 30,000 dockless e-bikes available for hire in London, with Lime being the largest operator. Forest and Tier also make up the city’s fleet.

In a bid to curb obstructive parking, TfL has introduced a new enforcement policy, saying it will “consider taking action” against companies who “allow their bikes to be parked outside of designated places”.

Such places include obstruction on the city’s red routes – its busiest highways – and on TfL land, which counts station entrances and bus garages.

TfL has also allocated £1 million this year for 7,500 new e-bike parking spaces, and plans to add 800 more on red routes by next summer.

A statement released by TfL on Tuesday said: “Dockless rental e-bikes and e-scooters are an important part of London’s transport network, helping people get around sustainably and connecting them to other transport modes. 

“However, problematic parking of the vehicles can cause significant safety issues for many Londoners, particularly disabled and older people, and these issues have been exacerbated by recent increases in fleet sizes.”

Any action taken would not come against the users of the e-bikes, but rather their operating companies, who TfL says are “responsible for ensuring their bikes are deployed and parked appropriately”.

The enforcement process may include warning letters, fixed penalty notices, prosecution and removal of e-bikes.

The clampdown comes as part of a new enforcement policy, put in place this month. Within the policy, TfL cites section 137 of the Highways Act, which states: “If a person, without lawful authority or excuse, in any way wilfully obstructs the free passage along a highway he is guilty of an offence and liable to imprisonment for a term not exceeding 51 weeks or a fine or both.”

Prosecution, the transport body has said, will come as an “action of last resort”.

Spokespeople for both Forest and Lime have welcomed TfL’s new policy, with the latter saying it “underlines the urgent need for increased parking areas across the capital”.

The policy was also welcomed by Will Norman, London’s walking and cycling commissioner, who said: “The Mayor’s million-pound investment into additional parking spaces, in conjunction with this scheme to ensure that vehicles are parked responsibly, will make London safer and more accessible for everyone.”

Use of bike rental schemes are at an all-time high in the UK, where more they make up more than 65,000 journeys a day.

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