It’s been a busy week in the world of e-bikes once again, with a new and very affordable e-bike launching in the UK, plus e-bike hire schemes and electric bike-related legal wrangles continuing to make headlines. Without further ado…
Lime pickle in London

Lime users in London are set to be able to get cheaper rides — to fewer places. The popular e-bike hire scheme has announced “LimePrime,” a subscription service which it says is “more affordable, more consistent and more integrated into the daily lives of riders who count on us.”
According to Time Out, the scheme has rolled out globally with different prices available based on location, but in London it’ll set you back £6.99 a month to unlock a ride of up to 20 minutes for a flat rate of £1.70, with additional minutes available at a discounted price. With the service, Lime bike rides cost less than a single tube journey (£2.20) or bus ride (£1.75).
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However, Lime riders who commute to Richmond may find their journeys cut short, as reported in The Standard. The affluent London borough’s council is on the verge of signing an exclusive deal with Forest, one of Lime’s largest competitors in the big smoke. The move will restrict Lime from operating in Richmond, as well as neighbouring boroughs Hounslow, Kingston, and Sutton.
It’s great that Lime is competing with more traditional forms of transport (albeit with an additional subscription fee), but the borough-by-borough e-bike scheme model is proving to be a hurdle. Imagine if your District Line tube train couldn’t stop at Richmond because it wasn’t allowed to…
UTO launches £1,599 folding e-bike
Cardiff-based bike retailer Damian Harris Cycles has posted a Facebook/Instagram reel highlighting a folding e-bike on sale for just £1,599. While the video never shows the entire thing, we’ve gathered from close-ups that the UTO ESS20 features a Shimano Tourney groupset and a hub motor, with cable-actuated disc brakes.
It’s probably not going to take on a Brompton, but UTO is establishing itself as an upcoming major player in the world of e-bikes, and that price tag is hard to ignore.
The fatbike war arrives in France

We’ve already covered the fatbike crisis in the Netherlands – but it’s not the only European country that’s struggling to stay on top of illegal e-bikes. Bike Europe reports that 8% of all e-bikes sold in France fail to meet legal criteria (25km/h limit, no throttle) – and a whopping 94% of these are fatbikes. The source of the problem, according to Union des Entreprises Sport and Cycle (UESC), is that most of these illegal bikes are sold online, with consumers failing to realise that they’re illegal.
The Union said, “This situation creates risks to user safety, misleads consumers and weakens businesses that adhere to standards and regulations.”
Shh! Cork introduces e-bike ‘library’

Cork residents who want to try an e-bike before they buy can now hire one thanks to a new scheme highlighted by the Irish Examiner. The Irish city’s council is launching an e-bike library in April, with 25 long-tail and cargo models worth up to €8,000 available to hire for just a €50 deposit. Families and individuals will get up to four months to see how e-bikes fit in with their lifestyles, with maintenance and insurance included.
The scheme follows similar ones in Manchester, Bradford, and rural Wales.
E-bike market bigger than analogue one in US

The USA is going electric. Bicycle Retailer and Industry News highlights that a lot of e-bikes were imported to the states last year, with Bicycle Market Research putting the number at 1.3 million, and Light Electric Vehicle Association and eCycleElectric Consultants reckoning it at a much higher 2.2 million.
The discrepancy in numbers is due to US customs not using a single unified code for e-bike imports. And although more non-electric bikes are still imported, 2025 has been the first year when the dollar value of e-bike imports has exceeded the value of non-electric bikes.
Colorado opens trails to e-bikes

Hot on the heels of MTB legend Hans Rey telling road.cc why he wants more trail access for e-bikes, the festively named village of Snowmass in Colorado is launching a trial to allow e-MTBs on tracks that would typically be restricted to analog bikes.
“The intention here is so meaningful and strong,” Council Member Britta Gustafson said in a town council meeting, as reported by the Snowmass Sun. “I think it’s to explore the progressive ways that we can approach something that seems more or less inevitable and open up access, and really thinking what the future has in store. And I’m proud of us in Snowmass for taking that first step.”
