Melbourne Council Tears Up E-Bike Deal Over Lax Behaviour

Melbourne Council Tears Up E-Bike Deal Over Lax Behaviour

The Yarra City Council has torn up a deal with Melbourne's biggest e-bike operator, Lime, after six years of complaints about the company's lax behaviour. The decision came after the council accused Lime of 'taking the mickey' out of ratepayers by refusing to punish riders who dump bikes, ride drunk, or travel on footpaths.

'We're this progressive council, so they think they can get away with it,' Yarra City Council Mayor Stephen Jolly told a council meeting on Tuesday night.

Since Lime's e-bikes hit the streets in late 2020, the company has made roughly $2.5 million from local trips, while the council didn't see a cent. Residents argued that environmental impacts and transport benefits, particularly for those aged under 35, outweighed the pitfalls of the scheme, which could be offset by more cycle-friendly streets.

Streets Alive Yarra president Jeremy Lawrence suggested that if bike parking on local footpaths was the issue, on-street bike corrals could be added to every street in Yarra, 'just as there's a car park in every street'. The council was already propping up multinational oil companies by encouraging people to drive and use fuel, he said.

E-Bike Stats and Figures

Since the e-bike trial began in the area, Lime recorded more than 425,000 local trips, council officers reported. That equated to about 201 trips each day, with an average distance of 1.6km travelled. Yarra City Council Councillor Evangeline Aston said the figures suggested more than 99 per cent of the local 100,000-person population in Yarra didn't use e-bikes.

'Lime's e-bikes have only managed to save a tiny fraction of our emissions,' Aston said. 'Two hundred and one trips per day is not going to save the planet, and it never will.'

What Happens Next?

The Yarra City Council hasn't ruled out a future shared e-bike scheme if another operator is interested. A spokesman for Lime said the company was disappointed by the decision, which was an 'entirely unnecessary disruption to the e-bike network across Melbourne'.

'Lime will continue to work with the City of Melbourne and other councils to make shared, affordable, and active transport a reality in Melbourne,' the spokesman said.

The City of Melbourne is due to consider making shared e-bikes permanent this year, while nearby councils are taking differing approaches to the technology.