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E-bikers, beware. Soon Lime riders won’t be able to use the bright green bikes in one west London borough after the council has completely banned them following complaints that they are clogging pavements, particularly causing problems for wheelchair users.
Hounslow Council has decided to outlaw the green e-bike rental company across the borough. Electric bicycles won’t be totally banned in the area (which includes Chiswick and Brentford) as Hounslow has given the Lime contracts instead to competitors Forest and Voi.
Hounslow Council ended the Lime contract after two years as it hopes to see ‘stricter enforcement for designated bay use’. There are currently more than 250 bays across the borough, but the council is handing over the reigns to Forest and others in hopes to ‘maintain clear pavements and discourage poor parking behaviour’.
The new contracts kick in on August 11, which means that from then there will be no Liming in the borough bordering Richmond and Acton. Lime will have to ‘geo-fence’ its bikes to stop them from operating in the area, which includes green spaces Gunnersbury Park and Boston Manor Park.
A Lime spokesperson told the BBC: ‘We're disappointed by Hounslow Council's decision. We're proud of our bid, which we believe offered the best overall value for Hounslow residents.’
Lime currently charges £3.99 for a 30 minute pass, while a Forest bike 30-minute ‘bundle’ is £3. Forest riders also get 10 minutes free per day, however that doesn’t include the £1 unlock fee or the 90p daily service fee.
It’s not just Hounslow Council that is cracking down on errant e-bike parking. In June TfL starting issuing Fixed Penalty Notices (FPNs) to people abandoning rental bikes on London’s streets. Meanwhile, councils in Brent, Wandsworth, Lewisham and the City of London corporation are all lobbying for greater restriction on e-bikes.
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