While cycling in London continues to grow, and more and more shared e-bikes are seen on, and often cluttering, London streets, Transport for London’s (TfL) flagship cycle hire scheme has seen a record decline in users.
The number of TfL cycle hires declined by more than a quarter in 2023, data published by the transport operator shows.
Last year saw a modest increase of almost 3%, however the number of hires remains lower than over the past decade.
However, the proportion of people cycling in London in 2023 reached levels not seen since the Covid-19 pandemic, where social distancing saw more people choose cycling over public transport, the latest data available from the government’s National Travel Survey shows.
And while TfL bike usage is dropping, one plausible reason why is the rise of rental bike apps such as Lime and Forest, which have become a common sign on London’s streets.
CoMoUK, a national charity on the public benefits of shared transport, has been researching bike share schemes since 2018.
Chief executive Richard Dilks said: “In London, there’s been big growth in bike shares, really big growth in the last couple of years.
“There are more shared bikes now, there are also shared bikes in areas that never had them before.”
However the decline in TfL cycles, also called Santander Cycles, has been noted by transport officials in the capital.
An active travel review published by Transport for London in December reported: “In 2023 demand on Santander Cycles dropped by 26%, following a sharp decrease in the number of hires by casual users.
“This reflects the impact of some changes to the fare system in late 2022 and the increased competition from dockless cycle hire schemes in London, both of which are being mitigated through improvements to the Santander Cycles offer.”
In September 2022, Transport for London changed its pricing structure for bike hires.
Where previously, a one-off £2 charge covered an unlimited number of 30-minute rides per day, this was replaced with a £1.65 flat rate for each 30-minute ride.
Dilks notes that the decline in casual users could be down to the cost of living pressures facing households in London.
He said: “Across all operators, right across the economy, you see people reporting discretionary spend and discretionary trips are down in lots of instances.
“There’s a really broad point there about the pound in people’s pockets, how people are feeling economically.”
TfL e-bikes, which were also introduced in 2022, cost £3.30 for up to 30 minutes whereas a pay-as-you-go Lime rental is £1 to unlock plus 23p per minute, making a 30-minute journey cost £7.99.
Why is TfL losing out to Lime?
With TfL e-bikes costing less than half as much as its largest competitor, it is unlikely that price alone is the reason for the decline in Santander bike usage.
Billy, a London-based lawyer who cycles to work and former cycling instructor, said: “Ultimately, it is a trade off between cost and convenience.”
TfL bikes use fixed docking stations, meaning cyclists are required to dock their bikes at specific stations, whereas Lime and Forest users have more options to leave their bikes.
Dilks explained this is a key limitation of TfL bikes.
He said: “The downside to docking bays is that that makes it expensive to operate and to put new stuff in is expensive, and requires planning permissions.
“Consequently, the scheme is captive to more or less Zone One and Canary Wharf. And of course, there’s a heck of a lot of London, and that doesn’t cover it.”
A cycling policy expert who asked not to be named due to their position in a local authority agreed: “They cost a fortune to install.”
TfL declined to disclose the average cost of installing a new docking station.
Responding to a Freedom of Information request, a TfL spokesperson said: “We are currently retendering the scheme’s operating contract, which involves bidders pricing the cost of station installation.
“Providing the requested information would prejudice our negotiating position and ability to secure best value for money in the new contract.”
However, TfL data published in response to a Freedom of Information request from South West Londoner shows a decline in the number of docking stations installed each year.
However, it is the dockless nature of Lime and Forest bikes that has prompted criticism from pedestrians, accessibility campaigners and even fellow cyclists.
In December, Will Norman, the Mayor of London’s walking and cycling commissioner, and Cllr Kieron Williams, London Council’s executive member for transport wrote a letter to Lime and Forest, calling for the companies to “fully address the issues being caused by problematic parking of your dockless e-bikes”.
They wrote: “Your bikes are frequently found parked on pavements, roads, and crossings in a way that negatively impacts people across our city.”
Dilks agreed with this concern.
He added: “For all the good news, you’ve only got to walk around London for a few minutes to see that we have not collectively sorted out the parking situation with bike shares.”
How many rental bikes are there in London?
Another concern for transport campaigners and policy makers is the lack of information on the number of shared bikes on London roads.
TfL does not hold data on the number of private rental bikes in London, and Lime does not publish statistics, saying the numbers are commercially confidential.
The Evening Standard reported last month that about 40,000 Lime and Forest bikes are thought to be for hire in capital.
Lime has denied suggestions that it has as many as 40,000 bikes alone.
However, private rental bike numbers are in theory capped by agreements made between the company and individual boroughs.
Norman, and Williams, went on in their letter to criticise Lime and Forest for their “unsustainable number of bikes”.
They wrote: “The numbers of dockless e-bikes are now exceeding the fleet caps you have agreed with councils, and we are increasingly concerned that you are deploying your bikes in unacceptable numbers in some locations.”
How can TfL compete with Lime and Forest?
With Lime and Forest’s dockless cycles being more appealing than the cheaper alternative, the question remains how can Transport for London’s bike scheme compete.
Dilks argues the solution is a cross-London approach to cycle parking, providing more space that is currently reserved for private cars.
Dilks said: “Just devote more space to it.
“There’s lots of benefits for the people using these schemes. It’s cost saving, it has health impacts, that’s mental health and physical health.”
Dilks argues one of the issues facing the sector is the lack of consistency across different boroughs, who all have separate usage agreements with private operators such as Lime.
He said: “You’ve got this very confusing array of options as a user of where you can pick up a bike or where you can drop it, where you can ride but not drop it, where you can’t pick it up, where you can’t drop it and so on and across different operators, and that is a headache that really none of us need.”
The anonymous cycling policy expert agreed, saying there is no remit for local authorities to do anything about operators exceeding their agreed numbers.
They added: “They are lawless and ungoverned.”
A spokesperson for Transport for London said: “Santander Cycles play a vital role in enabling Londoners to travel affordably and sustainably.
“The scheme also expands access to cycling, with many people enjoying its health benefits and choosing to take it up as a regular form of transport after trying it for the first time through the scheme.
“We recognise that hire numbers have fallen in recent years from previous record hire numbers, for reasons including increased competition from dockless cycle hire operators.
“We’re working hard to make Santander Cycles even better for our customers, this includes rolling out more e-bikes which our customers are responding positively to. We now have more than 2,000 e-bikes in operation, and in October last year, we saw the highest number of e-bike users in a single month, with 130,000 hires.
“Since introducing a new day pass option last year, hires have been boosted with 500,000 people using the pass in the first four months. We continue to make cycling more accessible than ever by opening and extending more Cycleways across the capital and making further improvements to Santander Cycles.”
A Lime spokesperson said: “Lime is continuing to work with TfL, City Hall and our 17 partner boroughs to create more parking bays to ensure demand is met and cycling remains accessible for all.
“Our goal is to ensure that shared e-bikes can continue to play a vital role helping London meet its ambitious active and sustainable travel targets, without causing any hazards or obstructions while doing so.”
Forest was also approached for comment.
Featured image credit: Unsplash
