Wandsworth Council has introduced a new Fair Use Charter for e-bike and e-scooter operators, which aims to tackle obstructive parking, improve safety and take stronger enforcement action so that the schemes work better for all residents.
The Charter aims to hold operators to account for their hire e-bikes and scooters in Wandsworth, and it also sets out to take action against bad parking and dangerous riding on pavements.
A new operational team is now patrolling the borough to support compliance with the Charter by monitoring known hotspots and removing bikes that are badly parked.
The Fair Use Charter also encourages residents to report e-bikes that are parked badly, and block pavements, roads and public spaces.
Under the new Fair Use Charter, e-bike companies will have to:
• Remove dangerous or obstructive bikes within two hours of a report
• make no-parking, no-go and go-slow zones clear in-app
• stop riders parking in banned areas
• move bikes quickly to prevent clutter in busy spots.
The Charter means the Council can:
• Remove and impound bikes that operators fail to clear within two hours
• make operators pay when they fail to act
• require operators to monitor and control illegal and dangerous cycling on hired e-bikes
• publish monthly data on usage, complaints, penalties and fines.
The Council will be reviewing and monitoring progress and will make amendments to the Charter where necessary, as well as renewing and amending legal agreements with operators.
The council will also be increasing the number of e-bike parking bays and expanding some bays in busy spots to ensure parked bikes are left within the allocated space.
If you spot an e-bike that is parked dangerously or obstructing the pavement in Wandsworth, you can report it directly via the e-bike operator’s app or website, or visit the Wandsworth Council website.