A dumped Lime bike at Warren Street

DOCKLESS e-bikes continue to be abandoned outside of designated bays, despite a big summer crackdown that operators and the council insisted would stop the problem.

The New Journal put pedal to the metal this week to test out Lime Bike’s new system that residents were told would “ensure bikes are parked in bays” rather than in the streets or blocking the elderly and disabled on the pavements.

We found peculiar discrepancies, with the app refusing to allow bikes to be parked in some streets but not others.

For example, while it was not possible to end a journey anywhere in Jamestown Road or Arlington Road in Camden Town, the option became available in Bayman Street and Mornington Crescent.

It was a total free-for-all in Fitzrovia and Holborn. Sources say the “geo fencing” tech used by Lime is not defined enough and this is, intentionally or not, creating grey areas across the borough where the rules do not apply.

“It’s like they are being allowed to get away with it,” an e-bike source said. “The question is, if the council is being strong enough with Lime about it? And if not, why not?”

Mornington Crescent and, below, Somers Town [both Simon Lamrock]

The situation appears to make a mockery of an agreement made between Lime and the council at the time a flagship contract was announced in June.

The council had insisted its £1million deal with Lime, and also Human Forest, now Forest, amounted to “new powers to control poorly parked e-hire bikes, which can obstruct pavements and hinder pedestrians”.

Simon Lamrock, who campaigns against the reckless parking of e-bikes, said: “Since the new contracts were awarded, we’re seeing many more bikes, both deployed and left by riders cluttering and obstructing pavements across Camden. Despite assurances riders will be fined if they park outside of official parking bays in the borough, we’re seeing quite the opposite.”

Mr Lamrock said the bikes were “causing serious hazards for people with disabilities, limited mobility, visual impair­ment, and for older veteran citizens”, adding: “Camden Council need to hold Lime and Human Forest strongly to account.”

Camden has taken a firm stance in favour of pedestrians and cyclists over vehicles in recent years as part of wider ambitions of improving the disgusting air polluting children’s lungs across the borough.

It has welcomed the e-bike revolution and as part of its contract had formally made space for 1,600 bikes in Camden – in 200 specifically designated bays.

Lime’s business model, up until the contract with Camden was inked in the summer, had been to flood the streets with electric bikes in the hope that their popularity would surge as long as they were easy to hop on or off from any street corner.

But the chaotic system caused a furore among residents, particularly the visually impaired, disabled and elderly.

The New Journal has reported how riders had found it easy to bust up the bikes’ tech so they could be used for free – and these “hacked” bikes were often left in bizarre places, from railings to water fountains to hanging from tree branches

. Lime has also sent representatives into schools warning children that anyone found “hacking” bikes will have criminal record. Following thousands of complaints, one of Lime’s top bosses was finally hauled in front of the council scrutiny committee in June.

At the meeting, chairman Cllr Awale Olad said he did not believe either e-bike company had “any interest in complying with the rules”.

This week, he said: “Lime Bike continues to flout the rules and doesn’t seem to want to put the investment in to improve their operations across Camden. If they’re incapable of respecting our public realm, they should immediately cease their e-bike services.”

Local authorities had faced problems acting against the e-bike firms because – unlike the Transport for London-approved e-scooter rental scheme – there are no bylaws or regulations, despite calls for the Government to introduce new laws.

Before its £1million contract was agreed, Camden Council had unsuccessfully lobbied for a byelaw that would have allowed local authorities to regulate the use of dockless bikes across the capital.

A mass of Lime bikes near Tottenham Court Road

Announcing the contract in June, Cllr Adam Harrison said: “This contract finally gives us the legal powers we need to act against ‘dockless’ hire firms if they do not meet our high standards of parking compliance. This will help us control the numbers of bikes in the borough, ensure that bikes are parked in bays, and make sure that operators swiftly remove any that are blocking the pavement. Through the contract, we can also ensure that operators fine people who do not park properly and ban persistent offenders.”

This week, a Camden Council spokesperson said: “We regularly monitor the bike hire schemes operating in the borough to ensure they are meeting the terms of their contracts to the council. If any issues are reported to us, we will review these with the specific operator.”

A Lime spokes­person: “Lime works closely with Camden Council on the delivery of our successful shared e-bike service in the borough. We have made a number of improvements to parking enforcement and education processes over the last six months as part of our efforts to meet and exceed the agreed parking compliance target.

“We understand the importance of not obstructing pavements in Camden and are working hard to meet this aim.”

Camden’s other contractor, Human Forest, recently rebranded as Forest, said its bikes “can only be hired and parked in designated bays provided by Camden Council”.