E-scooter riders face three-strike ban for rule breaches in Milton Keynes

The city council wants tougher controls on hire scooters and electric bikes following continuing complaints about dangerous riding, blocked public spaces and underage users.

Proposals going before a delegated decisions meeting on November 3 would pave the way for a single operator to run the city’s authorised hire service.

A proposed initial five-year contract, with an option to extend for another five years, would introduce stricter requirements covering rider behaviour, parking and operator accountability.

Under proposed principles, riders would be suspended or permanently banned after three confirmed infringements. These could include poor parking, pavement riding or carrying another person on a scooter.

Account holders who unlock vehicles for underage users would face an immediate ban.

Riders would also have to pass an interactive test about the rules with a score of 100 per cent.

The assessment would explain where people can ride and park, alongside warnings that carrying passengers and unlocking vehicles for underage users are prohibited.

Hire bikes and scooters would have clearly visible registration numbers, while the council proposes requiring the operator to test new camera technology to prevent pavement riding.

The proposed requirements also include selfie checks every five trips, additional checks when riders use a different device and mandatory identity verification for accounts linked to reports of underage riding.

Some verification measures are already operating through Lime.

The council also wants clearly marked parking areas, stands and corrals to keep vehicles upright and prevent obstructions.

The contract would set response times for complaints and the collection of bikes and scooters, with monitoring of parking standards and compliance.

The report acknowledges continuing concerns about rider behaviour, pavement riding and public safety, despite controls already introduced during the existing trial.

These include mandatory parking zones, speed restrictions, enhanced rider checks and camera enforcement in problem areas.

However, officers warn that a new contract would not, by itself, eliminate every concern about parking, behaviour or safety.

They also highlight the scheme’s popularity, with around two million hire scooter and e-bike trips annually and more than six million journeys since 2020.

The report argues that using one provider could support investment in vehicles and enforcement, while prices would have to be benchmarked against schemes elsewhere in the country.

The changes concern the authorised rental service. If procurement is approved, the council’s timetable envisages the new service starting by September 2027.