The Metropolitan Police has contacted Lime and other e-bike operators about the impact that badly parked cycles and speeding riders are having on communities across London.
Deputy Commissioner Matt Jukes told Times Radio that if operators were doing their job properly, flocks of their bicycles would not be seen “strewn across the pavement”. Since the hire schemes were introduced in 2017, abandoned bikes left in public areas have been a persistent source of frustration for Londoners.
Operators told to work with councils
Mr Jukes said on Monday that the force is receiving a response from some operators, who are working with local authorities that will principally enforce the rules. He added: “But you know it's clear if they [the operators] were doing a better job you wouldn't be receiving so many calls and messages about it.”
“Our job of course is to go after the street robbers. We've halved street robbery in Westminster over the last year by going after those on e-bikes and... we're doing that alongside some very serious investigations as well. But we're serious about the impact of this behaviour in our communities,” he said.
Police crackdown on phone theft
Met Police Commissioner Sir Mark Rowley earlier this year said Scotland Yard was taking mobile phone theft “massively seriously” and cracking down on criminals using e-bikes to snatch devices from pedestrians. He stressed that drones were being used to pursue phone thieves on electric bikes.
In the 12 months from June 2025 to May 2026, the number of thefts and robberies where phones were stolen fell by 14,000, a reduction of 18% on the previous year. The first five months of this year saw 6,700 fewer, a drop of 20.6%.
Government plans for e-bike licensing
The Government has said it wants to end the “wild west” of e-bike parking by giving councils greater control over how hire operators run their services. New powers will include giving boroughs the ability to fine drunk riders, as part of a wider push to tackle dangerous riding, poorly parked dockless e-bikes and anti-social behaviour.
Transport Secretary Heidi Alexander told the Standard that the Government wants to give Transport for London (TfL) powers to introduce a city-wide licensing scheme for shared e-bike operators, replacing the differing rules currently in place across boroughs.
“We're giving power to Transport for London to set a London-wide licensing scheme because at the moment there are different rules for different boroughs and it can be confusing for people,” she said. “We think shared e-bikes are a good thing. Personally, I love them, I think they're quick and easy for people but we need to bring some order to it.”
The Government's consultation will consider how the new powers could be enforced, with councils able to set conditions for operators, including measures to tackle anti-social behaviour and irresponsible parking. Ms Alexander said that if evidence arises that operators do not have robust plans in place to tackle dangerous e-riders, they risk losing their licence. Lime has been contacted for comment.
