Lime announces $25 million action plan to help fix London's e-bike chaos
In November, Transport for London (TfL) announced new steps to regulate e-bikes, but a lack of legislation or power meant that most of the onus fell to e-bike services to do the right thing. Now, Lime CEO Wayne Ting has announced a £20 million ($24.8 million) five-point London Action Plan to help with overcrowding and poor parking, multiple publications report, including UKTN.
"The feedback we’ve received from London residents, community groups and elected officials is why we’re launching our London Action Plan," Ting stated. "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."
An investment of £5 million ($6.2 million) will go into creating 2,500 additional e-bike parking spaces. Part of the plan will also include expanding Lime's on-street team to 400 people and aiming to move or collect about 4,000 bikes daily. Plus, Lime intends to use improved AI to confirm proper parking in end of trip photos.
The action plan directly responds to TfL's statement at the end of last year. "The new policy sets out that TfL will consider taking action against operators who allow their bikes to be parked outside of designated places on red routes and on TfL land, which includes areas such as station forecourts and bus garages," the organization said. "Operators are ultimately responsible for ensuring their bikes are deployed and parked bikes appropriately."
As someone living in London, I can certaintly attest that Lime bikes are scattered everywhere around the city. Lime claims that 49 percent of 18 to 34 year olds in London rent an e-bike weekly. The company also states that 2024 saw an 85 percent increase in annual journeys.This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/transportation/lime-announces-25-million-action-plan-to-help-fix-londons-e-bike-chaos-141559309.html?src=rss