Rental e-bikes and e-scooters have become a common but controversial sight in Nottingham.
Lime has operated rental e-bikes in the city since April 2023, while Dott, formerly known as TIER, has provided e-scooters since March 2025.
Dott introduced its own e-bikes in July to compete with Lime. At the same time, it removed some scooters to remain within the 1,300-vehicle limit agreed with Nottingham City Council.
The Local Democracy Reporting Service spoke to people in Nottingham city centre on Thursday, August 13, with most supporting the move to replace some scooters with bikes.
Students Dan Zacharia and Amy Harris said e-bikes can be dangerous but are generally safer than scooters.
Dan, 20, said: “I think bikes are quite useful. They can sometimes be quite dangerous if people aren’t watching where they’re going.
“Sometimes people use the bikes to get around faster, but then they don’t really look where they’re going and you kind of have to dodge them. People are going really fast.
“But I think it’s probably better to have more e-bikes for the safety aspect of the city, just because of the level of control.
“You have to learn how to ride a bike and, because of that, you can control it better. With an e-scooter, basically anyone can ride one and that means you might not be able to control it as well.
“I think e-scooters can be a bit more dangerous because they can go so fast that it can be harder to stop yourself from crashing into someone if you aren’t careful.
“As long as the new bikes are policed and people are safe, then it’ll be fine. It just depends if they go on the pavement.”
Amy, also 20, said: “More people are going on the pavements with the scooters. I feel like, on bikes, people stick to the roads.
“People can be quite dangerous with the scooters. I think the e-bikes are normally safer.
“I like that e-bikes are very sustainable. It means fewer people driving, and I think anything that keeps fewer people driving is a good thing. There are fewer emissions, but I do think there’s a safety aspect that’s quite unpoliced.”
Under current law, e-bike operators do not need council approval to launch services in Nottingham.
The city council has a contract with Lime that requires its service to meet locally agreed standards. It does not have an equivalent contract with Dott, although the two have a memorandum of understanding, which is not legally binding.
Jim Fosterjohn, from Carlton, said adding more e-bikes would not be a positive move.
The 78-year-old said: “A lot of them are on the pavements. You turn around and somebody’s whizzing past you.
“They’re a nightmare on the road as well. As I was coming here on the bus, somebody on an e-bike went straight through a red light and carried on.
“Somebody’s going to get knocked down and injured, especially older people who can’t move so quickly.”
The government is expected to introduce a national licensing system for micromobility operators in 2028, giving councils formal powers to regulate them.
Katie Golder and Maria Pritchard, from Long Eaton, said e-bikes could be useful when used correctly but described them as a nuisance in pedestrian areas.
Katie, 26, said: “It’s fine having them and I think they are helpful. In the city centre, there just needs to be a correct path for them to use.
“Multiple times I’ve been walking through town and one’s come towards me and they’ve just swerved into me. It’s dangerous. Multiple times I’ve had to move out of the way for them.”
Both said they believed e-scooters presented a greater danger and welcomed the reduction in their number.
Maria, 54, said: “People have got less control over scooters than a bike, perhaps.
“I think it feels dangerous sometimes because they don’t know how fast they’re going when there are people around.
“They have to brake sharply and possibly bump into people. I just think there needs to be more control.”
Katie added: “I’d prefer e-bikes over the scooters. I think they are better and safer.
“It’s on the roads where e-scooters are dangerous as well. We’ve had it before when driving and they’re swerving in front of you and they’re careless.”
By Joseph Connolly, Local Democracy Reporter
