‘Boris bikes’ have become less popular in London since 2022, data released by Transport for London (TfL) has revealed.
Popularly known as Boris bikes, as they were introduced in 2010 while Boris Johnson was Mayor of London, the total number of annual Santander Cycle hires has decreased by 28.7% between 2022 and 2024.
This contrasts with a previous steady increase between 2020 and 2022, with TfL recording a 10.3% rise in the e-bike service’s annual hires since the COVID-19 pandemic, followed by a sudden 25.9% decrease from 2022 to 2023.
Experts suggest that the decrease has been caused by a rise in popularity of dockless e-bikes such as Lime, as well as more Londoners using their own bikes.
London Cycling Campaign Network Coordinator, Katy Rodda, highlighted the growing popularity of cycling in the city, stating that the drop in Boris bike hires was not overly reflective of the overall trend across the city.
She said: “London is a good place to cycle, it’s a great place to be outdoors and you can get to places really quickly.
“A lot of the reasoning behind this drop is down to Lime bikes, as we know these numbers have gone up.
“Lime has been expanding the boroughs its available in, and as they are e-assist, which helps people get up hills and get around quicker, they are most likely a much easier and therefore more popular option.”
She also highlighted that a main factor in the decline in Boris bikes’ popularity may be down to Lime bikes being dockless, allowing them to be parked almost anywhere, despite some parking bay restrictions in certain boroughs.
She said: “Santander bikes have always had these docks, which are great because people can’t leave them just anywhere, but the downside is that if the bays are full, people can’t park them, which has caused quite a lot of issues.
“Contrastingly, Limes are more popular as if you can either park 200 metres away from somewhere and walk, or you can park 20 metres away and be near where you’re going, you are of course going to do the latter.”
The London Cycling Campaign estimates that last year 1.33 million cycle journeys were made across London daily, the highest number yet.
Rodda also said that many Londoners took up cycling during and following the COVID-19 pandemic, and much of the infrastructure built to encompass this uptake has remained or been upgraded.
Lime bikes are currently available in 17 boroughs across the city, whereas Santander bikes only cover 11 boroughs, all concentrated across central London.
Data released by Lime last year revealed that Southwark, Hackney, Islington, Wandsworth and Lambeth were the boroughs with the most people commuting by bike.
Stephen Hill lives in Wandsworth, and cycles to work every day using his own bike, and also uses it for general transport to go shopping, visit friends and socialise.
He said: “Most of the Santander bikes are heavy, cumbersome and haven’t got a good gear ratio, so you can’t achieve a high top speed, which limits the distance that can be covered.
“London is a great place to cycle as long as you keep your wits about you. Your hazard perception skills need to be a lot more than when driving a car.
“Having said that a lot of money has been spent on increasing and improving cycle lanes over the last 10 years I’ve been cycling in London, particularly after the pandemic.
“Cycling is a quick way to get around and is also a low carbon option.”
Many of these boroughs also prioritise cycling safety, to encourage more residents to take up the sport on a day to day basis.
Islington launched its Safer Spaces campaign in July 2021, which reflects the community’s needs to improve safety in different sectors of the borough.
A key part of this is hire bikes, and the council collaborate with partners such as Santander and Lime to ensure the bikes are being used effectively and responsibly in the borough, and common issues, such as inconsiderate bike parking and bikes being used without paying are being effectively tackled.
Councillor Rowena Champion, Islington Council’s Executive Member for Environment, Air Quality, and Transport, said: “Last year, more than a million trips were taken by hire e-bikes in Islington, and they directly support our efforts to create a greener, healthier borough by offering environmentally friendly transport that helps people get active.
“Introducing bike parking spaces directly supports our efforts to create a more equal borough, ensuring that local people can continue to enjoy travelling via e-bike while keeping pavements and roads accessible.”
To find out more, go to https://lcc.org.uk.
Featured image credit: John Jackson via Unsplash
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