UK cycle industry trade bodies BA and ACT call for Government action as Transport for London bans non-folding e-bikes due to fire risk concerns
Posted on in Cycles News
UK cycle industry trade bodies the Bicycle Association (BA) and Association of Cycle Traders (ACT) have issued a joint response to the news that carriage of non-folding e-bikes is no longer permitted on the London Underground and most other public transport services operated by Transport for London.
The BA and ACT trade bodies represent the vast majority of companies in the UK cycle industry, including many responsible, mainstream suppliers of bikes and e-bikes, who safety-test their products extensively to recognised international standards, and responsible retailers who sell and maintain these products.
The UK cycle industry, through its trade bodies, has been engaging for several years now to assist Government to address the tragic and serious issue of fires attributed to e-bike and e-scooter batteries.
The industry understands that the overwhelming majority of such fires are caused by products sourced for use in the 'gig economy' for delivery purposes. To be able to compete for jobs and make a living, delivery riders are strongly incentivised to procure, at the lowest possible cost, often unsafe e-bikes or e-bike conversion kits (and/or batteries, chargers and parts of uncertain compatibility), almost always direct from overseas sellers via online marketplaces. Often, such products do not even comply with the legal limits on speed and power for a UK road-legal e-bike.
This understanding is supported by the recent comprehensive research into e-bike battery safety published by the Office for Product Safety and Standards (OPSS) and authored by the Warwick Manufacturing Group, and the recent targeting of the gig economy delivery sector by OPSS with multi-lingual e-bike safety videos.
Responsible UK e-bike brands and retailers have no involvement whatsoever in such unsafe, direct-imported products.
To make this very clear to consumers and other stakeholders, and to reassure users that that proper, reputable, legal and safety-tested e-bikes are extremely safe products in normal use, responsible UK suppliers and retailers have through their trade bodies developed a comprehensive set of voluntary industry initiatives:
- THE BA REGISTER OF SAFETY-AUDITED E-BIKE BRANDS: A register of responsible e-bike brands whose quality and safety processes have been independently audited.
- THE ACT & BA E-BIKE POSITIVE RETAILER PLEDGE: Identifying responsible e-bike retailers who have committed to the Pledge – to provide only safe, legal e-bikes, spares and repairs.
- THE E-BIKE POSITIVE CAMPAIGN: A public-facing campaign aiming to strengthen consumer confidence in reputable e-bikes, backed by the BA, ACT, Cycling UK and Bosch.
- THE BA E-BIKE BATTERY COLLECTION AND RECYCLING SCHEME: The BA is developing a voluntary industry initiative to facilitate the safe, responsible collection and disposal of end of life e-bike batteries via collection points UK-wide.
- COMPANIES AGAINST TAMPERING: The BA and many member companies support this Europe-wide initiative emphasising the industry’s opposition to de-restriction of e-bikes and similar actions.
The industry continues to further develop, at an international level, state of the art safety testing standards for e-bikes and e-bike batteries, to make these already safe products even safer.
It is however unacceptable that unsafe products continue to be sold and used in the UK, with often tragic consequences when battery fires occur. The reputable UK cycle and e-bike industry therefore calls for:
- Government to accelerate legislation to make online marketplaces and overseas sellers fully liable for the safety of the products they supply, and to stop unsafe products at the border.
- Government to require the operators of app-based delivery services to ensure that their services are delivered using only safe and legal e-bikes, with significant penalties for the operator if this is not enforced.
It is unfortunate but understandable that incidents involving these unsafe products, primarily used in the gig economy food delivery sector and procured via online marketplaces, have led to a blanket restriction on carriage of all non-folding e-bikes on London’s public transport systems.
The cycle industry fully supports actions to keep the travelling public safe, and such decisions are properly a matter for Transport for London.
We do note with regret that this restriction will also affect many users of thoroughly safety-tested, responsibly supplied and legal e-bikes, who use these vehicles as a healthy, quick and enjoyable way to complete their journeys, including disabled people who use e-cycles for mobility.
The Bicycle Association and Association of Cycle Traders are committed to continue their close engagement with Government on these issues, aiming to accelerate meaningful action to address the root causes of these fires while safeguarding the reputable e-bike sector and the e-bike's potential as a healthy and enjoyable form of transport which also reduces urban congestion and pollution.