Lime launch £20M London Action Plan

• Lime’s five-point London Action Plan includes investment in more parking infrastructure, introducing real-time end of trip photo review, and increasing Lime’s on-street team to over 400 people who will quickly remove and redistribute bikes

• Demand for Lime continues to surge with more than 16 million Lime journeys taken by Londoners during commuting hours in 2024, and 4 million people having ridden a Lime bike or scooter in London since it launched in 2018

Lime, the world’s largest provider of shared e-bikes and e-scooters, has today announced a £20 million five-point London Action Plan, designed to help improve e-bike parking, encourage cycling safety and boost cycling rates across the capital this year.

The move comes as demand for e-bike hire has increased at a rate that exceeds the current parking space available in London’s boroughs, leading to overcrowded parking areas and poorly parked e-bikes.

Lime’s research shows that almost half (49%) of Londoners aged 18-34 say they hire a rental e-bike at least once a week, and total Lime e-bike journeys taken in London increased by 85% annually last year. Meanwhile, more than 16 million Lime journeys were taken by Londoners during commuting hours in 2024, and 4 million people have ridden a Lime bike or scooter in London since it launched in 2018.

Released today, Lime’s London Action Plan is the company’s biggest investment in parking improvements and safety in a city globally to date. The commitment aims to improve its service and make sure all Londoners can get around the city more easily and efficiently.

Lime’s London Action Plan includes: 

1. PARKING INFRASTRUCTURE: A £5M investment in Lime’s parking infrastructure fund to create at least 2,500 more dedicated parking spaces. 

1. • With further cooperation from boroughs, Lime is aiming to work with boroughs to build at least 1,500 of these additional spaces in the next 6 months.
   • This investment is available to be used by boroughs immediately. It follows Lime’s initial £1m investment in 2024 that funded the creation of almost 750 parking spaces across London.
   • Lime also hopes to use a portion of the new funds to contribute to the Mayor of London’s 40,000 new bike parking locations set out in his manifesto, as part of its commitment ‘to ensure that dockless e-bike and e-scooter schemes can continue to play an important role in a safe and sustainable transport network.’
   • Additionally, Lime has set up a dedicated Private Land Parking Task Force aimed at identifying additional parking spaces in partnership with private landowners, businesses and other organisations.
   • OPERATIONS: Bolstering Lime’s operations with a £13.4M investment, including increasing its on-street team by 60%, taking the team to over 400.
   • Lime has hired 100+ new on-street team members, growing Lime’s Parking Patrol team which is responsible for removing and redistributing poorly parked e-bikes from overcrowded parking locations. This expanded team is already in place.
   • Lime will increase its Parking Patrol presence at hotspots in the busiest London boroughs at peak periods. Team members will be equipped with 15 cargo bikes enabling them to move excess e-bikes more efficiently, with each cargo bike capable of moving 5 Lime e-bikes at a time.
   • The 400 strong on-street operations team will aim to collect or move 4000 bikes per day thanks to additional investments into a series of improved operational processes.
   • The operational management team will also increase headcount by 80%.

2. TECH: Tech advancements to improve parking, including an improved AI end-trip photo review to block poor parking in real time.

3. • To date, Lime has retrospectively issued warnings and fines for poorly parked e-bikes.
   • This new technology will ensure that e-bikes are parked appropriately in real time by preventing riders from ending their trip if parked obstructively, or in unauthorised areas.
   • Lime plans to announce additional tech advancements later in the year to improve parking further.

3. SAFETY: Lime to fund a £250K safe riding campaign. 

4. • To improve the safety of all London cyclists, Lime will increase its investment in rider education this spring/summer.
   • This will focus on deterring illegal behaviour, such as running red lights and riding on pavements.
   • Lime recognises this is a complex problem and wants to work with City Hall, TfL, London Councils and other operators to deliver a successful campaign.

4. COMMUNITY: A £250K commitment to improve access to cycling for more Londoners. 

5. • Following an initial £100K contribution in 2024, this major reinvestment in the Share the Joy Fund means Lime will continue to support the London Cycling Campaign’s efforts to encourage more Londoners to travel by bike.
   • The fund awards grants to projects that improve cycling accessibility, with previous recipients including London Bike Kitchen, Cycle Sisters and Wheels for Wellbeing.
   • Over £45,000 worth of grants were distributed in 2024. Applications for the next funding window will open in February.
   • The additional investment into the fund this year will also support the Mayor of London’s goal set out in his Transport Strategy for 80% of all trips in London to be made on foot, by bike or using public transport by 2041.
   • Lime will also gather feedback from non-cyclists to improve its service for local communities further, including the installation of clearly signposted, scannable QR codes on wheel covers for the public to report direct feedback quickly and easily.

Lime also commits to a regular and transparent reporting on the plan, providing updates on progress that has been made to tackle parking and overcrowding throughout the year and beyond.

Wayne Ting, CEO, Lime: “Since we launched in 2018, London has embraced Lime’s e-bikes. While demand has surged, infrastructure and our ability to ensure riders always have somewhere to park safely and considerately has not kept pace, leading to parking challenges across our industry. 

“The feedback we’ve received from London residents, community groups and elected officials is why we’re launching our London Action Plan. We recognise the need for meaningful investments to accelerate change and improve parking, starting with more funding for dedicated e-bike parking, and additional operational capacity and processes. This £20m plan brings together crucial changes across our business that will help improve our service so that all Londoners can get around the city easily, and safely. 

“We’re not stopping here. We’re still working on more solutions to enhance our operations in London, and we’re excited to update our London Action Plan throughout the year with additional improvements we’re making. London is a world-leading city with ambitious active travel and climate targets, and we will continue to collaborate with London boroughs, TfL and the Mayor of London to make it not only more sustainable, but more accessible and inclusive too.”

Tom Fyans, Chief Executive, London Cycling Campaign: “Lime bikes are changing the face of cycling in London, bringing joy to a huge and diverse audience new to cycling in London. But with that comes great responsibility, and LCC is pleased to see Lime taking the lead in improving its operations and ensuring this increase in people’s mobility is a win-win for all Londoners.

With this new investment, Lime is helping ensure new riders cycle and park more responsibly. We now need all councils and TfL to get behind this revolution in mobility and ensure more Londoners have the chance to enjoy the benefits.

“The increased investment in the Share the Joy fund will also give a massive boost to those working in London’s diverse communities to ensure more people experience the freedom and life-transforming power of cycling.”

Lime continues to work collaboratively with boroughs and TfL to improve parking infrastructure across London.

Featured Photo by William Warby on Unsplash.