'Parking patrols' launched to pick up badly parked e-scooters from streets and pathways in Milton Keynes

Scooter provider Lime says the ‘Parking Patrol’ has been introduced to effectively manage the redistribution of scooters on city redways and streets, keeping them clutter-free.

The initiative will see Lime deploy its team across the city to "correct" mis-parked vehicles.

The Parking Patrol - themselves riding e-scooters - will also be sanitising the scooters, advising users on proper parking procedures and providing tips on how to ride safely and respectfully around the town.

Lime general manager Florence Milner said: “ “While complaints in Milton Keynes have been minimal, we’re introducing the Lime Parking Patrol today as an extra tool to encourage safe and considerate riding and parking across the city.

"We’ve seen great success with similar initiatives in other regions across the globe and want to ensure Milton Keynes continues to be a model for safe, reliable and responsible e-scooter schemes throughout the UK.”

Ms Milner added: "We’re now one month into the Milton Keynes trial and with over 20,000 trips and 28,500 miles travelled on Lime e-scooters, we’re thrilled that residents and visitors to Milton Keynes are enjoying this new mode of eco-friendly transport. Excitingly, the trial has saved an estimated 5,134 car trips which, in turn, has avoided 3.18 tons of carbon being released in just the first month."

From today, the Lime team will be wearing distinctive Lime shirts and will be monitoring locations of high activity, such as Milton Keynes Central rail station and near the intu Shopping Centre.

Each Lime scooter is equipped with a gyroscope and sensors to alert Lime's Operations Team if it has fallen over.

Early data from Milton Keynes shows that 98 per cent of Lime scooters have been upright during the trial, in line with numbers from Paris and Chicago.

The Lime Patrol team will be quick to respond and rectify the situation if a scooter falls over.

Ms Milner said: "With relatively few incidents over the first month of the programme, Lime and Milton Keynes are providing a model for safe, reliable and responsible e-scooter trials in the UK. Lime’s Parking Patrol will further these efforts to ensure a pleasant experience for riders and non-riders alike."