E-bike company Lime has been dealt a blow after a west London council scrapped its two-year trial contract in favour of two rival firms.
Hounslow council dropped the firm after complaints from residents the e-bikes blocked pavements and were being parked in 'dangerous places'.
Instead, cyclists will be able to rent e-bike from Voi and Forest in the borough from August 11.
A spokesperson for Lime told the BBC they were 'disappointed' by the decision as they felt the company offered the 'best overall value'.
They continued: "We're also disappointed for the thousands of Hounslow residents that rely on our bikes daily to connect to other areas of London.
"Built over seven years operating in the capital, Lime's service has allowed people living in Hounslow to access all parts of the city, and cycle as far as Hackney and Lewisham in one easy journey.
However, a council spokesperson said they decided the end the contract after 'widespread community feedback' calling for calling for stricter parking enforcement and more affordable pricing.
In 2023, Hounslow resident Sateesh Battas urged the council to pause the Lime trial over safety concerns.
Recalling one incident, he said: "A very large car came around the corner, obviously saw the bike, climbed on to the kerb, you know, to get past it and almost clipping our car just to navigate around the bike. It's terrible".
More recently, Shravan Joshi MBE, a member of the Court of Common Council for Bishopsgate Ward, shared with LBC that he met senior UK representative of Lime to voice concerns about the challenges posed by e-bikes cluttering our pavements.
He wrote: "The City Corporation already has agreements in place with hire operators around where people should park bikes, but in response to the scale of complaints received, we have been compelled to trial our own clean-up campaign, to reduce pavement obstructions caused by poor parking.
"The message to providers was clear- sort out the mess, or the City Corporation will take action!
"Over the past two weeks we have removed and stored around 120 badly parked bikes that block pavements and cause a nuisance to pedestrians and then, charged them back to the providers to cover our costs."
After concerns were raised, Lime announced a £20 million 'London Action Plan' to revolutionise e-bike parking, enhance safety and make cycling more accessible for all Londoners.
Nearly half of Londoners aged 18-34 use Lime bikes weekly, according to the company.
