Hackney Council suspends dockless bike parking to stop them being dumped on pavements

The parking of dockless bikes in Hackney has been suspended while the council strikes a deal with a provider who can stop them being dumped on pavements.

Uber, which recently launched the electric Jump bikes, stated last week the council had asked users not to park in the borough while it goes through a tendering process, and it would therefore be updating its service area to exclude Hackney.

The town hall says it needs to make sure bikes don't block the pavement and make it hard for people with mobility impairments to get around.

Transport lead Cllr Jon Burke wrote on Twitter: "We're doing this to bring rigour to dockless bikes in Hackney. They're littering pavements and causing obstructions to people with mobility issues.

"We won't necessarily limit ourselves to one partner."

Cllr Burke also said the town hall was working on creating a by-law with London Councils to ensure bikes don't clutter pavements.

Responding to criticism on Twitter from blogger Hackney Cyclist, who pointed out cars do the same thing and asked if they were being banned too, he added: "It does make me chuckle how many of the left liberals and Greens liking your tweet think people with prams or operating wheelchairs should suck it up so Silicon Valley billionaires can make even more money through unregulated capitalism."

The council said: "We're currently setting out how we want to work with bike sharing partners as part of a competitive tender process. We expect to reopen bike sharing in Hackney in a matter of weeks once this is complete."