Lime vows to sort out e-bike parking with £20m ‘action plan’ – UKTN

The biggest operator of e-bikes in London has vowed to sort out the capital’s e-bike parking problem after unveiling a £20m ‘action plan’.

The California-based business said the five-point plan will help deal with the fallout from rising demand for e-bikes, leading to overcrowded parking areas and poorly parked e-bikes.

That will be led by a £5m investment into parking infrastructure which will see the creation of 2,500 extra parking spaces, to support the Mayor of London’s commitment to create 40,000 new bike parking locations set out in his manifesto.

It will also include a £13.4m investment into expanding the Lime team in London, with more than 100 new on-street team members, taking the total team to 400 members, in a bid to speed up removing and redistributing poorly parked e-bikes from overcrowded parking locations.

Lime also vowed to introduce new tech advancements to improve parking, including an improved AI end-trip photo review to block poor parking in real time, and said it would fund a £250k safe riding campaign.

Lime CEO Wayne Ting said: “Since we launched in 2018, London has embraced Lime’s e-bikes. While demand has surged, infrastructure and our ability to ensure riders always have somewhere to park safely and considerately has not kept pace, leading to parking challenges across our industry.

“The feedback we’ve received from London residents, community groups and elected officials is why we’re launching our London Action Plan. We recognise the need for meaningful investments to accelerate change and improve parking, starting with more funding for dedicated e-bike parking, and additional operational capacity and processes.”

Already have an account? Log in