When life gives you lemons, ride a lime bike, or not?
Why are Lime bikes so popular?
After a year since Lime bikes had been introduced into Lee Green in south east London, there has been a spike of usage; evident around Lee station, the Leybridge Estate and Burnt Ash Hill.
Although there aren’t specific stats in the local area, Lime bike usage in London is frequent, at almost 12 million trips from 2019-2023 and a general average of 10% increased use per month in London.
Many Londoners use Lime for various reasons, with commuting holding the highest reason for use at almost 40%, followed by social outings which account for a quarter of Lime bike usage.
Usage is similar across both recorded genders.
(stats according to https://cdn.li.me/content/uploads/Lime-in-London-final-report-2-min.pdf)
I believe the widespread reason of Lime bike usage being so high is due to its accessibility.
This is seen regionally as 97% of Londoners are within a two-minute walk of a Lime bike.
When accessing the map in Lee, there seems to be one within 30 seconds of all locals.
These Lime bikes are increasingly convenient across London: from their speed of up to 20 mph to its ability to dock and end the affordable ride (currently 29p per minute for an average bike).
Besides convenience, the obvious secondary factor is environmental benefit.
The Lime bike is electrically powered, allowing it to be eco-friendly whilst maintaining efficient travel speed and encouraging a healthier lifestyle through exercise.
Despite the seemingly simple concept of an electric bike, it accounts for a 370-tonne reduction of carbon emissions.
In addition, 28%of riders report using them for health reasons, which is an improvement from using gas-powered cars.
This has encouraged more people to use Lime as an alternative to cars, suggested through Lime helping people avoid 1 million motor trips.
These are statistics for London overall but translate to most local areas on a smaller scale.
The growing concerns of Lime in Lee
Despite all of the statistics and evidence for Lime being the next step in our journey to a more sustainable London, there are conflicts which arise from their ease of accessibility.
Lime bikes can be docked and left anywhere within the Lime green zone.
The attractive convenience of this means that many streets are home to a multitude of bikes, often lain across pavements, blocking pathways and are a growing issue in the eyes of many affected local residents and councils.
(According to https://leemanorsociety.org/lime-bikes-update/) The Lee Manor Society posted notice about discussions in the Lee Green Assembly on the 8 October 2024, where issues were raised concerning the dumping of Lime bikes, which obstruct pavements and can be trip hazards, as well as causing the area to look less appealing to the eye.
This issue can be argued fairly well as evidence of dumping can especially be seen nearby Lee station, where often up to 10 bikes are abandoned in areas of undergrowth.
It is also rare to see a Lime bike in the local area propped up on its stand: however, there are reports of the stands being cumbersome and difficult to operate.
Subsequent to local councils raising these issues with Lime, some boroughs are planning to introduce designated bays for Lime bikes in late 2025.
Any user who does not dock their ride in a designated bay will be fined.
The location of bays could affect accessibility for users in areas like Lee as the closest proposed bay is located next to Blackheath Hospital (a 16-minute walk away from Leegate – used in this case as the ‘centre’ of Lee.)
What do you think?
There are obviously many factors to consider when looking at this specific case; such as convenience, environmental benefits, cost, health and lifestyle.
How has the explosion in use of Lime bikes in your area affected you?
How do you feel about the proposed introduction of designated parking bays?
