E-bike licensing means ‘every bridge is Checkpoint Charlie', comedian says

Independent

21 hours ago

A 'Checkpoint Charlie' situation has been created near London bridges by councils making contrasting decisions on licensing electric bikes, a comedian said.
Irish stand-up Dara O Briain complained that e-bikes are 'stacking up' at river crossings between the boroughs of Hounslow and Richmond in the west of the capital.
Lime, one of the rental companies involved, urged councils to collaborate so riders can 'travel seamlessly across boroughs' rather than face a 'patchwork of boundaries'.
Hounslow has given permission for Forest and Voi's e-bikes to be used in its area, while Richmond has licensed rival company Lime.
The latter said it has agreed to a request by Hounslow for its bikes' electric motors to cut out if riders enter the borough.
This causes the bikes to become heavy to ride, resulting in many users ending their trips.
The PA news agency saw about 30 bikes near the southern entrance to Chiswick Bridge on Monday night.
Some were parked appropriately to the side of pavements, but others had been thrown in bushes or tipped over.
O Briain, 53, likened the issue to the Checkpoint Charlie border crossing point between East and West Berlin during the Cold War.
In a post on social media platform X, he wrote: 'Hounslow Council have banned Lime bikes, and licensed Forest and Voi; neighbouring Richmond has licensed Lime and banned the others.
'So every bridge is Checkpoint Charlie, with loads of Lime bikes parked on one side and loads of Forest and Voi on the other. Top work everyone!'
Richard Dilks, chief executive of shared transport charity CoMoUK, said: 'This rather bizarre set of circumstances is an unfortunate outcome of the current situation in London, where regulation of bike sharing schemes is decided at borough level.'
He said the English Devolution and Community Empowerment Bill going through Parliament could make Transport for London the capital's licensing authority for rental e-bikes, enabling a 'more coherent pan-London approach' to be designed.
A spokesperson for Lime said the existing scenario is 'frustrating for riders'.
She said: 'We've already been contacted by many of them who are disappointed at the new rules.
'They should not have to experience London as a patchwork of boundaries.
'We want to see councils work together so that residents can travel seamlessly across boroughs, without having to stop at borders.'
Alex Berwin, head of policy at Forest, said the issue is 'exactly why we have been calling for a pan-London approach to regulation'.
He went on: 'We need a single regulatory framework, one enforcement model and one operational rulebook across the capital, whilst ensuring services support the local needs of each borough.'
A Voi spokesperson said its users are 'free to cycle across borough boundaries, but parking must be in designated bays within participating areas'.
He added: 'We're working with local leaders and TfL towards a London-wide scheme to make cross-borough journeys simpler.'
Hounslow Council and Richmond Council were approached for a comment.
Rental e-bike companies say they encourage people to switch from cars to a more sustainable form of travel, but there have been long-standing concerns about users blocking pavements with the bikes after they finish their rides.