Photo: City A.M.
The Dutch-French micro-mobility company Dott has decided to remove all of their e-bikes from London streets due to claims that the e-bike market is out of control in the English capital.
After recently removing all Dott scooters from Paris due to a new ban on e-scooters, the micro-mobility company are now taking action to remove their e-bikes in London due to concerns over the city’s management of them.
The CEO of Dott, Henri Moissinac, commented on the state of e-bike regulation in the city. He said:
“It’s a bit out of control, actually. And that’s why you end up with these inconsistent experiences for users.
“The scooter scheme is properly organised, it works well, everybody has proven it safe,” Moissinac told City A.M.
A commonly reported issue with e-bikes is their tendency to cut out in borough’s that do not have e-bike deals, meaning they are limited for use in specific boroughs.
For example, Camden council only have e-bike deals negotiated with Lime and Forest, not Dott – meaning that any Dott e-bikes will cut out and stop working when they cross the Camden geofence.
London e-bikes are out-of-control. Dott bikes stop automatically when they transgress into competition's borough. Users angry about this. pic.twitter.com/jcZ4bOtjUh
— London Analyst (@londonAnalyst2) October 17, 2023
This issue also increases the risk of e-bikes being dumped when they stop working in unsuitable areas, potentially causing access problems for elderly or disabled pedestrians.
Moissinac offered his advice on how to tackle the e-bike issue in the city:
“Our recommendation is it should be organised by TfL just like scooters…So then you have a consistent geofence [that] makes sense for the end user.”
