Westminster Council: E-bike users face having to park up or pay up

BBC London reporter Barry Caffrey came across several e-bikes blocking pavements on Wednesday morning

Designated bays for docking e-bikes are to be installed in London's West End after complaints the bikes are often left blocking pavements.

People who fail to park e-bikes in the correct bays after using them could incur additional hire charges or receive a fixed penalty notice.

Currently, many dockless e-bikes can be left wherever the user's journey ends.

Westminster Council says the bikes are being left in places where they pose an "imminent risk to public safety".

The local authority is looking at installing up to 250 bays over the next few months, with a plan to suspend some parking bays to create the necessary space.

It says it is working on the proposals with e-bike providers, which broadly "support" the idea.

Westminster Council says that, under the plans, if riders do not dock their bikes they will continue to pay for the hire until the bike is returned to a bay.

Labour councillor for Hyde Park Paul Dimoldenberg told BBC London the authority was "very keen to encourage more cycling", but "some sense around this" was needed.

"It's just not a fair way of living in a city with your fellow citizens so we want to bring some sanity to this current free-for-all."

In August, Westminster Council instructed officers to seize e-bikes left blocking pavements, saying pedestrians and wheelchair users were being forced to walk around the bikes, sometimes on to the road.

• Dockless bikes left blocking pavements to be seized

• E-bike users who dump bikes to face larger fines

• Dockless bikes causing accidents for blind people, charity says

Last year, Westminster Council instructed officers to seize bikes left blocking pavements

The National Federation of the Blind of the UK (NFBUK) has welcomed the move, having previously said stranded bikes were discouraging blind people from visiting the West End.

Lime Bikes, which says it has "tens of thousands" of daily customers in London, said it had already helped to install parking areas at sites across the capital.

"We welcome the opportunity to work with Westminster to implement long term-solutions for the safe and tidy parking of shared e-bikes."

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