Ealing Council has granted senior officers new authority to immediately seize and impound e-bikes that pose a danger or nuisance to pedestrians, removing them from the street without a court order.
During a full council meeting on Tuesday, councillors voted to delegate statutory powers, a move that allows seizures without court orders. The change means e-bikes can be removed from the road immediately if they present a danger.
New Powers and Enforcement
A council report said: "Immediate removal under section 149(2) is limited to bikes that present a danger requiring removal without delay; other nuisance cases require notice and, if necessary, a court order."
The scheme requires e-bike hire firms to reimburse recovery expenses, with seized bikes stored in a secure council-owned garage on a housing estate.
Dockless e-bikes have surged in popularity in recent years, being used for one in 10 of the 1.5m daily cycle journeys in the city, according to estimates by Transport for London. Since January, London boroughs have seized more than 3,000 e-bikes, with hire companies facing growing calls to stop blocking pavements.
London-Wide Regulatory Push
London currently has a piecemeal approach to regulating e-bikes, with individual councils responsible for setting the rules on their use. But last month, after new legislation was passed giving mayors greater powers, London mayor Lord Sadiq Khan laid out his vision for a licensing scheme that would apply to all e-bike operators in the capital.
The Labour politician said it would create a single set of rules and rid the city of what he called a "Wild West approach" to controls.
In Ealing, alongside the new powers voted for by councillors this week, the Labour-run local authority has negotiated an updated memorandum of understanding with e-bike operators. Under the fresh terms, operators will be required to clear reported bikes left in an obstructive location within two hours rather than four.
Local Operator Requirements
The 1,800 dockless e-bikes in Ealing operate under the memorandum, with companies Forest and Lime having permission to supply them. Voi continues to operate in the borough despite not being chosen. According to Councillor Dominic Moffitt, the cabinet member for climate action, the council formally requested that Voi cease operations and withdraw its fleet from Ealing, but Voi has refused to leave.
Residents are being encouraged to report obstructive bikes via the Love Clean Streets app, including the bikes registration number to facilitate enforcement.
To avoid cluttered streets, the council is transitioning away from virtual in-app parking areas toward a network of approximately 300 physically marked bays across the borough. Additionally, in-app geofencing precision has been tightened down to a 10cm accuracy to prevent riders from terminating rides outside of marked bays.
Lime and Forest will also be forced to fund additional on street "rangers" dedicated to rearranging missparked bikes. This follows a failed enforcement scheme which was supposed to see operators fined for mis-parked bikes. However, the scheme launched in February 2026 led to no Fixed Penalty Notices being issued to operators. Ealing Council said this was mainly due to limited staff capacity and "a focus on collaborative working rather than punitive action" to address the issue of obstructive bikes.
