Row erupts between Enfield Council and e-bikes operator Lime

A deal to allow Lime to operate in the south of the borough appears to have collapsed after the Tories took power in May, reports James Cracknell

A Lime bike pictured on the borough boundary between Enfield and Haringey

Enfield Council and Lime issued contradictory statements this week over who is to blame for the failure to allow the firm’s e-bike users to enter the borough.

The council announced in December 2024 that it had agreed to allow Lime to extend its e-bike services from Haringey up to the A406 North Circular through Edmonton, Palmers Green and New Southgate in Enfield borough, but has since accused the company of maintaining a “virtual barrier at the borough boundary”.

Lime refutes this, and claims instead that it was the council which failed to honour the original deal.

The row erupted at the end of July when the council confirmed it was removing a number of ‘micromobility’ parking bays which had originally been installed to help accommodate Lime’s e-bikes in the south of the borough.

In response to the Dispatch story about these removals, Lime contacted the paper to claim the council’s statement about Lime “restricting access into the borough” was misleading.

Instead the company says it remains keen to expand into Enfield but had been blocked from doing so by the new minority Conservative administration, which is taking a more pro-motorist approach compared to the previous pro-cycling Labour administration which lost power in May.

Alice Pleasant, a senior public affairs manager at Lime’s UK arm, said: “We’d love to bring our service to Enfield and our door is always open if the council wants to talk more about how we could work together.”

In its latest statement on the situation, a council spokesperson said: “Enfield Council had authorised Lime to operate up to the A406. However, the Lime app ringfenced a virtual barrier at the borough boundary, so users could not ride their Lime bikes into Enfield.

“The council has since taken the decision not to allow Lime to operate in the borough.”

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