Shocking photos of a massive e-bike pile-up by London Bridge have prompted outrage on social media.
Disabled people have slammed the “dangerous” heap of mainly Lime bikes that appeared on Sunday, March 10.
Both Transport for London (TfL) and Southwark Council have refused to take responsibility for the situation, pointing the finger at each other and inadequate government regulation.
Lime said it “quickly cleared the bikes” and that addressing poor parking was a “top priority” with a meeting now planned between the company and Southwark Council.
Social media users responded to the photo in all sorts of colourful ways with one describing it as “dystopian art”.
Another person said “stupid, lay and selfish” people were to blame while one X user suggested “democracy” was the culprit.
Liberal Democrat and Borough and Bankside Councillor Victor Chamberlain shared a photo taken by a resident over the weekend.
He wrote: “I’ve written to @LimeBikeSF about this unacceptable & dangerous concentration of bikes today. I’ve been contacted by wheelchair users who could not cross this major junction.”
Southwark is one of several boroughs participating in e-scooter and e-bike trials but it has struggled to stay on top of poor parking.
To combat the issue, it’s threatened Lime and other operators with fines and pledged to replace 105 parking spaces with 147 new e-bike and e-scooter bays.
But in this instance, a Southwark Council spokesperson said the e-bikes’ location, which is on a TfL-managed road, made the issue “TfL’s responsibility”.
When TfL was approached, a spokesperson appeared to turn it back on Southwark Council, saying dockless e-bikes were “organised locally between individual e-bike operators and individual boroughs”.
The TfL spokesperson added: “We do not currently have the powers to prevent the unacceptable situation seen here around London Bridge.”
However, TfL did say it was lobbying Westminster to better regulate dockless e-bikes, with the government hinting at new legislation in the 2022 Queen’s Speech.
Ben Spencer, a wheelchair user who previously spoke to the News about his epic journeys across London’s transport system, said such incidents was hampering disabled travellers.
The Millwall fan wrote on X: “Why are @limebike not held accountable for this mess. I’m all for cycling, but this keeps happening and keeps blocking disabled people trying to get from A to B.
“They clearly don’t have a solution. Is it time to have a rethink on dockless?”
Another X user said: “Come on everyone, ask yourselves how – or more why – this was done. It’s not just random lazy individual users, this is malicious intent, for whatever reason.”
“This is just one example of why democracy doesn’t work,” another wrote. “Too many people are selfish and moronic.”
Jack McKenna, Senior Public Affairs Manager at Lime: “”Addressing poorly parked bikes is a top priority for our industry. It’s something we take very seriously, especially when obstructing pavements and busy junctions create difficulties for those with access needs.
“We are working closely with Southwark Council, partners and other operators to address industry parking challenges, as demand grows significantly in busy areas and public transport hubs. We also work with London Sight Loss Council, and other charities on our Disability Advisory Board, to gather feedback to improve our operations and the experience of the community.
“Once alerted to the obstructive bikes near London Bridge, our Lime Parking Patrol quickly cleared the bikes and are continuing to monitor the area closely this week. We have contacted the Councillor and will be meeting with Southwark Council to discuss solutions to ensure bikes are not left obstructively around busy stations in Southwark as we approach Spring.”
They should pick up every one of them and take them to the scrap yard to be crushed. TFL and Southwark council both refusing to take responsibility for the mess they have created, how surprising.