Rogue And Illegal Ebikes Spark Challenges In UK Cities

Forbes

a day ago

Rush-hour cyclists, traffic and pedestrian commuters on Bishopsgate in the City of London, the ... More capital's financial district, on 28th February 2025, in London, England. (Photo by Richard Baker / In Pictures via Getty Images)
Ebikes are a perfect solution for getting around cities — but rogue designs that aren't legal on UK roads need to be addressed, as do other sources of friction.
Because of that, one local councillor has called to bring 'licensing laws out of the 19th century', saying at the Living Streets Walk Summit in Bristol that the demands of the delivery market and a failure to sufficiently crack down on illegal ebikes are leading to dangerous driving.
And it's no surprise there are concerns. At the end of February, a pedestrian was hit in West London by an ebike rider in West London — not a rental or sharing scheme, to be clear — and died after a month in hospital.
Though the ebikes hurtling around making deliveries, illegally modified bikes causing road chaos, and the rise of ebike sharing schemes are causing friction, this shouldn't be construed as cyclists as a whole being a problem on city roads, where cars wreak much more havoc – and take up more space, too.
In the UK, ebikes are legal so long as they don't provide assistance above 15.5mph and are pedal assist, and the motor must only kick in when the rider is pedalling, rather than controlled via a throttle.
Of course, if you've been on British city streets, you'll have seen plenty of fat-tire bikes go much faster, when the rider isn't pedalling; those should technically be rated as electric motorbikes and only be ridden on the road with appropriate registration, license and tax, and meet safety rules. Some of those bikes are illegally imported, and others are modified to break the law.
A member of the City of London Police Cycle Team takes part in a police operation to confiscate ... More illegally modified ebikes near Bishopsgate Police Station in London. Police seizures of illegally modified electric bikes (e-bikes) soared in the past year amid concerns their speed and weight present a lethal threat to pedestrians, according to Freedom of Information (FoI) figures obtained by the PA news agency. Forces across the UK confiscated 937 e-bikes in the year to August 11. Picture date: Thursday September 12, 2024. (Photo by Jonathan Brady/PA Images via Getty Images)
Police forces have started to crack down on illegal bikes. Last year, the City of London police confiscated 937 dodgy ebikes, up from 511 the year before, including one that was modified to reach 70mph. That had been used by a food delivery worker, according to reports, and it's not clear that he ever actually hit that top speed; the bike was taken by police, and the rider faced no action, according to reports.
Delivery companies need to address the use of illegal bikes by riders on their platforms, but such rogue bikes are also used for crime, with police also reporting the use of illegal ebikes and scooters for drug distribution. Dodgy ebikes aren't just a problem in London and the UK, but New York has tried to crack down on the issue too.
Ed Plowden, a Green councillor for Bristol, speaking at the Living Streets Walking Summit in Bristol this week, said it's time for action before the issue with ebike delivery drivers gets out of hand.
"I do think that we're seeing a new danger, which is for want of a better phrase, 'Uberoo' – and it's a really unlicensed market where people have been pushed to deliver things really, really fast, and we are seeing some really quite risky behavior, which is making all of us less safe," he said.
"And I'd like to see a bit more licensing and a bit more regulation of that market, because the people are putting themselves at risk by the way that they're moving around the city, often on personally changed vehicles," he said. "So I think that's something that we really need to drag some of our licensing laws out of the 19th century."
He added it goes beyond dodgy ebikes, with issues raised by ebike sharing platforms, including messy pavement parking. 'Some of the tech companeis are making our cities more dangerous for all of us by putting people onto really quite dangerous vehicles that they've adapted themslves and asking them to whizz around really, really fast,' he said.
While the introduction of a 20mph speed limit on Bristol roads has improved road safety, he says that casualties from road safety issues have gone back up. 'Some of the electric scooters and soem of the ways that people are forced to move very quickly through our city, delivering things is making our cities less safe for all of us, and we need some better regulation there of the tech bros,' he added.
Indeed, beyond delivery ebikes, sharing platforms also continue to spark concerns. One alarming story comes via London Centric, which earlier this year reported on an alarming trend of legs broken when Lime bikes fall on riders after problems braking.
Another ongoing challenge is how such "sharing" bikes are left littered on sidewalks, potentially blocking access — it's even tripped up celebrities like Timothee Chalamet. Speakers at the conference noted that pedestrians are supposed to be prioritized on pavements, but admitted that doesn't always happen.
Rental bikes are pictured scattered across a pavement on 26th February 2024 in London, United ... More Kingdom. E-bikes left unsafely on pavements present hazards for pedestrians, in particular for disabled and elderly people. (photo by Mark Kerrison/In Pictures via Getty Images)
Plowden added that giving over space encourages better behaviour — suggesting making room for bikes of any sort to be parked would help ease the challenge. But he noted that councils may find it difficult to remove car parking spots to make space for cycle parking because the former is a source of revenue, and the latter is not.
It's worth noting that the health benefits of active transport — cycling and walking, essentially — are so high that they may outweigh the safety risks. Professor Scarlett McNally, also speaking at the conference, said "the benefits outweigh the risks by 10 to one."
What do the bike companies say? A spokesperson for Forest (formerly known as Human Forest) said that it takes rider and pedestrian safety "extremely seriously" and that it doesn't publish raw incident figures, but that "serious injuries are rare".
The company admitted that e-bikes are naturally heavier due to battery and motor, but that the weight is distributed to enhance balance and minimise the risk of tipping.
LONDON, ENGLAND - JUNE 4: A Lime rental e-bike on the pavement in Leadenhall Street on June 4, 2024 ... More in London, United Kingdom. (Photo by)
A Lime spokesperson echoed that, noting that share bikes need to be more sturdy and that ebikes are generally heavier than standard bicycles, saying that Lime bikes are about the same weight as other share bikes on London roads.
"At Lime, safety is our highest priority," a spokesperson for Lime said in a statement sent to Forbes. It guides how we design and maintain our vehicles, how we develop technology and educational materials to encourage safe riding, and how we work with cities to provide safe riding environments. As part of our London Action Plan, we are increasing our investment in safer riding education to improve the safety of all London cyclists."
"In London, 99.9% of trips end without a reported incident, which speaks to the strength of our safety record across millions of journeys," the spokesperson added. "The majority of Lime users are responsible, and incidents of dangerous cycling are rare. When they do occur, we take them seriously and work closely with the police and local authorities to support investigations."