Regulation of e-bikes among possible devolved powers

The English Devolution White Paper, which was published yesterday, outlines how the future of  local government might look – an England covered by Strategic Authorities, a number of councils working together, covering areas that people recognise and work in. 

This promises to devolve a variety of powers and responsibilities to the regions, including among them greater powers to regulate e-bike and e-scooters within their area.

Under ‘Transport and local infrastructure’ the paper promises to empower Strategic Authorities to ‘take greater oversight of their local transport networks.’

In terms of e-bikes, it says: 

Local Transport Authorities will be empowered to regulate on-street micromobility schemes (like hire bikes), so local areas can shape these schemes around their needs, connect people to public transport, and tackle the scourge of badly parked cycles and e-cycles.

The response was overwhelmingly positive. On X, Living Streets posted: ‘Our Chief Exec says: ‘We welcome this news – pavements are for people, but abandoned bikes and e-bikes block routes for disabled people, families with prams and those living with sight loss.’

Westminster City Council has long campaigned for regulation of the industry and has installed 360 parking bays to cope with  demand were quick to comment, with council leader Adam Hug saying:’The e-bike and scooter phenomenon exploded over recent years, to the point where Westminster has the most e-bike journeys in the world, with over 2,800 bikes per hour peddling around our streets per hour at peak times.

‘While we support active travel, we all know our pavements are at points a dumping ground for abandoned bikes, which can make getting around the City a problem for the visually impaired, wheelchair users and others with special needs.

‘Westminster City Council has championed the cause of e-bike regulation and lobbied the Government to act after the failure of the previous transport bill to deliver. That void left us with a patchwork quilt of different schemes across the capital, and e-bikes don’t navigate by local authority boundaries.

‘It took ten years to win the argument to devolve the power to regulate pedicabs, so I am glad this White Paper paves the way for Mayors and transport authorities to get the powers they need to implement a sensible scheme for e-bikes rather sooner.’

Hal Stevenson, Director for Policy at Lime, UKI said: ‘Devolving more powers to local authorities to establish and manage popular shared e-bike and e-scooter schemes is a positive step. However, in the context of ambitious national and local travel targets, it is crucial that we collaborate with national and local government to ensure that any changes made do not hinder people’s ability to cycle. We remain committed to working in partnership with local authorities to ensure our e-bikes and e-scooters contribute positively to communities.’

Other points of interest in the white paper include the promise that National Highways will strengthen its relationship with Mayoral Strategic Authorities: ‘ensuring a more cohesive approach to the management and development of England’s strategic road network alongside local roads. One example is action to address pavement parking at a national level: we will publish a formal response to the 2020 pavement parking consultation.’

It is also suggested that Active Travel England will work with Strategic Authorities to: ‘increase capability and address skill gaps to ensure a consistent approach to safety and accessibility for all users, with a right to request capability assessments for their constituent authorities.’

The development of heat networks could also be put in the hands of Strategic Authorities who would have a zoning coordinator to designate areas as heat network zones.