Conflicting council decisions on electric bike licensing have created a “Checkpoint Charlie” situation near London bridges, according to comedian Dara O Briain. <\/p>\n
The Irish stand-up highlighted the issue of e-bikes “stacking up” at river crossings between the boroughs of Hounslow and Richmond in west London.<\/p>\n
Hounslow has granted permission for Forest and Voi\u2019s e-bikes to operate within its boundaries, while Richmond has licensed rival company Lime. <\/p>\n
This disparity means riders face a “patchwork of boundaries”, preventing seamless travel across boroughs. Lime, one of the rental companies, has urged councils to collaborate to resolve the issue.<\/p>\n
![\"The](\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/19100614-69892a9b-7b64-4fbe-8f90-4b3378ae5135.jpg\")
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open image in gallery<\/p>\n
The electric motor of Lime e-bikes cuts out if they approach Hounslow (Lucy North\/PA)<\/p>\n
The latter said it has agreed to a request by Hounslow for its bikes\u2019 electric motors to cut out if riders enter the borough.<\/p>\n
This causes the bikes to become heavy to ride, resulting in many users ending their trips.<\/p>\n
The PA news agency saw about 30 bikes near the southern entrance to Chiswick Bridge on Monday night.<\/p>\n
Some were parked appropriately to the side of pavements, but others had been thrown in bushes or tipped over.<\/p>\n
O Briain, 53, likened the issue to the Checkpoint Charlie border crossing point between East and West Berlin<\/a> during the Cold War.<\/p>\n In a post on social media platform X, he wrote: \u201cHounslow Council have banned Lime bikes, and licensed Forest and Voi; neighbouring Richmond has licensed Lime and banned the others.<\/p>\n \u201cSo every bridge is Checkpoint Charlie, with loads of Lime bikes parked on one side and loads of Forest and Voi on the other. Top work everyone!\u201d<\/p>\n open image in gallery<\/p>\n Dara O Briain (Matt Crossick\/PA)<\/p>\n Richard Dilks, chief executive of shared transport charity CoMoUK, said: \u201cThis rather bizarre set of circumstances is an unfortunate outcome of the current situation in London, where regulation of bike sharing schemes is decided at borough level.\u201d<\/p>\n He said the English Devolution and Community Empowerment Bill going through Parliament<\/a> could make Transport for London<\/a> the capital\u2019s licensing authority for rental e-bikes, enabling a \u201cmore coherent pan-London approach\u201d to be designed.<\/p>\n A spokesperson for Lime said the existing scenario is \u201cfrustrating for riders\u201d.<\/p>\n She said: \u201cWe\u2019ve already been contacted by many of them who are disappointed at the new rules.<\/p>\n \u201cThey should not have to experience London as a patchwork of boundaries.<\/p>\n \u201cWe want to see councils work together so that residents can travel seamlessly across boroughs, without having to stop at borders.\u201d<\/p>\n Alex Berwin, head of policy at Forest, said the issue is \u201cexactly why we have been calling for a pan-London approach to regulation\u201d.<\/p>\n He went on: \u201cWe need a single regulatory framework, one enforcement model and one operational rulebook across the capital, whilst ensuring services support the local needs of each borough.\u201d<\/p>\n A Voi spokesperson said its users are \u201cfree to cycle across borough boundaries, but parking must be in designated bays within participating areas\u201d.<\/p>\n He added: \u201cWe\u2019re working with local leaders and TfL towards a London-wide scheme to make cross-borough journeys simpler.\u201d<\/p>\n Rental e-bike companies say they encourage people to switch from cars to a more sustainable form of travel, but there have been long-standing concerns about users blocking pavements with the bikes after they finish their rides.<\/p>\n A spokesperson for Hounslow Council said: \u201cThe issue of neighbouring boroughs having different e-bike operators is not unique to Hounslow. This is an issue at many boundaries wherever there is a change in operator. E-bike service areas are dynamic, with boroughs deciding to review operators at different points.<\/p>\n![\"Dara](\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/e87034adf7b098f1d24e4fdea53dbaa2Y29udGVudHNlYXJjaGFwaSwxNzU1NjgzNDM4-2.26009674.jpg\")
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