London pedestrians have demanded e-bike companies make customers leave the vehicles in docking stations to stop pavements becoming cluttered. Residents and tourists on the South Bank said the dozens of e-bikes on surrounding streets make the area look untidy and are an obstacle for disabled people.
Many rental bike operators in the capital let users leave the vehicles anywhere. While riders are instructed to keep the bikes out of the way of pedestrians, in practice they are regularly left blocking the pavement.
E-bikes are the second most common type of street clutter found on streets in the capital after restaurant pavement signs, according to research by think tank Centre for London. It found 11 e-bikes inconveniently parked within 400 metres on a stretch of Belvedere Road in Lambeth, while carrying out an inspection of the street in May.
Mum and daughter Angela and Debbie Owens, who live nearby, told the Local Democracy Reporting Service [LDRS] that something needed to be done about the rental bikes blocking local streets. Ms Owens, 73, said: “They get in the way when you’re walking down the street.
"You have to zigzag around them. People just abandon them on the pavement. If you were blind or disabled, you would have trouble.” Her daughter, 45, added: “I think people should have to put them in docking stations. They are left wherever at the moment.”
Mark Fisher, 39, who was visiting London from the Cotswolds, agreed. He said: “I believe they should be docked rather than dock-less. It saves problems. When I did live here in Putney, you would often find them in the Thames. But if they help people move around and are environmentally friendly, they’re a good thing.”
Benedict Johnson, 54, added: “They’re not a problem for me, but if I was blind they would be a problem.” A manager of a building on Belvedere Road, who declined to give his name, branded the dock-less e-bikes “a bloody nightmare” and said they should be removed.
Councillor Rezina Chowdhury, deputy leader of Lambeth Council, said e-bikes left on the pavement could cause a “real hazard” for pedestrians and said the council was asking the government to give it powers to tackle the problem.
She added: “In the absence of this government backing we are doing what we can locally. We have a signed memorandum of understanding with all of the dockless bike operators and as a result we are in the process of installing more than 200 kerbside bays. Once we have finished painting the bays in December they will be the only place they are allowed to be parked.”
In June, neighbouring Southwark Council said it would start removing rental bikes that obstruct the pavement and fine operators following a surge in complaints about them. The following month Kieron Williams, leader of the council, admitted staff were yet to remove any of the e-bikes.
The Centre for London wants the government to grant councils and Transport for London [TfL] powers that would allow them to force e-bike operators to require customers to park the vehicles in dedicated zones. The think tank says the bays should be located on the road where possible, rather than the pavement.
It should be a straightforward solution. Many dockless bikes could fit in a single parking bay. I think Paris have taken this approach, where the parking zones for dockless bikes are very specific and small, but still frequent to be convenient.