Lime e-bikes will be banned from being hired or parked in Richmond borough, under new rules.

Richmond Council has approved plans to switch e-bike providers from Lime to Forest.

The Council's Transport Committee agreed to award exclusive operating rights for e-bike services to Forest yesterday (Monday, 16 March), which will effectively ban Lime bikes from being hired or parked in the borough.

A Lime spokesperson told the Local Democracy Reporting Service (LDRS) the operator was "extremely disappointed" with the decision.

Although the Council could still have allowed people to ride Lime bikes through Richmond, the spokesperson said this would not be viable for the firm as most trips in Richmond started or ended in the borough.

It's likely that Lime bikes will simply stop working when entering Richmond once the changeover has taken place, however that's not been confirmed.

The decision marks a major change for Richmond, as Lime has been the sole provider of e-bikes in the borough since the Council entered into a contract with the firm in 2021.

There were more than 1.5 million e-bike trips in the borough last year – an increase of 50 per cent on the previous year.

Residents provided feedback on e-bikes in Richmond ahead of a scrutiny meeting in June last year, as the Council investigated making changes to the service, with many respondents expressing a desire for the service to continue but under greater control.

The committee agreed the service should continue at the meeting and the cap on the number of e-bikes should be increased from 250 to 750 in the borough, with an option to rise to 1,000 overall.

It also agreed to increase the supply of e-bike parking bays from 65 to at least 150 to reduce the number left blocking the pavements.

The Council then invited bids from operators to provide e-bikes for the next three years, as part of an improved service, which it received from Lime, Forest and Voi.

The authority considered having one operator with a fleet cap of 1,500 e-bikes, or two operators with a fleet cap of 750 e-bikes each.

A report by Council officers said Forest scored highest in both scenarios for pricing plan and overall ranking, although the quality scores for all operators were similar. They ruled Forest as a single operator had the "best overall proposal".

But residents raised concerns about the move at the meeting on 16 March.

Resident Ian Stephens said removing Lime bikes from Richmond would create problems for residents and commuters, who would have to ditch their bikes when travelling into the borough.

He said: "From a residents' perspective, it's difficult to see how this move serves the public interest. E-bikes have become an essential alternative in a time when the District line and our local rail services are frankly unreliable.

"Lime is also London's largest e-bike provider, used across all other boroughs of London, so I struggle to see and understand how removing that option from Richmond borough of residents helps with the interconnectivity of London."

Councillors said the move would give riders full access to neighbouring boroughs Kingston and Hounslow, where Forest was the designated e-bike provider.

Lib Dem Councillor Alexander Ehmann, Chair of the committee, said the plans aimed to replace current provision "with a single operator with all neighbouring boroughs being accessible and a larger fleet than is presently available".

He added: "It's really important to recognise, as per some of the comments that have been made from residents, that we want integrity of service and we want to see service delivery that fosters greater take-up of these services, not reduced take-up."

The committee agreed to award the contract to Forest, subject to necessary agreements, with details of when this will begin to be confirmed in due course.

A Lime spokesperson said: "We submitted a strong bid that the Council rated highest for quality. Shared e-bike schemes should prioritise maintaining high-quality, popular cycling options in London over unsustainable, and often short-term financial commitments from companies, or risk reducing cycling and undermining the city's net-zero goals.

"Since 2021, we've served tens of thousands of Richmond residents each week, building a hugely popular service that connects the borough to the rest of London."

They added: "Fewer than one in 10 Lime trips in Richmond are currently ride-through only journeys. Most trips start or end there because of its outer-borough geography.

"Restricting access this way would simply trigger a second 'Checkpoint Charlie' with neighbouring boroughs such as Hammersmith & Fulham and Wandsworth.

"Almost all London boroughs are moving toward systems with at least two operators, giving residents a choice of shared e-bike services.

"That makes this decision to limit choice all the more disappointing, and hundreds of Richmond Lime riders have already written to us expressing their concern."

The Council said it would work with both operators to ensure a smooth transition to the new arrangement.

Hounslow Council ended its partnership with Lime in August after selecting Forest and Voi as its preferred providers, meaning Lime bikes no longer work in Hounslow. Brent Council had threatened to ban Lime from the borough over the vehicles being abandoned, but later agreed to allow them to continue operating after dozens of new bays were agreed.

Meanwhile Islington Council has put both Lime and Forest on a "last warning" over abandoned bikes.

READ MORE: Richmond Council fined for failing to support boy's special educational needs.

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