Hackney £1.75 Lime and Voi Cycle Hire Fare 2026

Key Points

• Hackney Council has launched a new flat fare of £1.75 for dockless Lime and Voi bike rides taken within the borough, matching the cost of a single London bus fare and billed as London’s lowest upfront dockless bike fee for residents.
• The flat fare applies to Voi rides within Hackney for up to 30 minutes, while Lime will meet the council’s flat-fare requirement through a £45 monthly LimePass+ that caps every ride at £1 when used in the borough.
• Hackney Council has agreed a five‑year contract, understood to be worth around £93m in projected hire revenue, with Lime and Voi as its exclusive dockless e‑bike operators, ending competition from rival companies such as Forest within the borough.
• As part of the deal, Lime and Voi will share a percentage of all e‑bike journey revenue that starts in Hackney with the council, potentially generating millions of pounds for local services over the life of the contract.
• Hackney Council says the new tariff is intended to align e‑bike hire with bus fares to encourage more local people to cycle, cut emissions and congestion, and support its wider climate and transport strategies.
• The flat £1.75 fare will apply to journeys made entirely within Hackney; earlier briefings suggested it might only be for residents, but Hackney subsequently confirmed that the capped price will apply to all journeys within the borough boundary, regardless of where riders live.
• Under the agreement, both operators must expand and diversify their fleets, adding lighter models, e‑bikes with child seats and e‑cargo bikes capable of carrying heavier loads such as shopping or small furniture.
• To tackle street clutter, Lime and Voi bikes will have to be parked in designated bays, with reports that the firms could face fines of around £80 for each bike left abandoned on pavements outside authorised parking areas.
• Hackney Council plans to create around 400 designated dockless bike parking bays by the end of 2026, where riders will be required to end their trips.
• The borough has previously run an exclusive dockless scheme with Lime and is regarded as one of London’s leading cycling boroughs, with high levels of bike use and extensive cycle infrastructure.
• According to reporting by London Centric, the structure of the contract appears to be based primarily on the share of revenue that Lime and Voi offered to return to the council, rather than on the total projected cashflow.
• The new Hackney deal comes amid an intense battle between e‑bike firms across London and at a time when Transport for London (TfL) and London Councils are still working on city‑wide rules for dockless e‑bikes and e‑scooters, which one source has suggested could be at least two years away.
• Forest, which operates in neighbouring boroughs such as Haringey, Islington and Tower Hamlets, had bid to expand into Hackney but has been excluded by the new exclusive arrangement with Lime and Voi.
• In public comments reported by London Centric, Voi’s UK public policy manager Harry Foskin said the company’s flat fare offer in Hackney “applies to Hackney residents, costing £1.75, matching bus fares”, while pointing to a wider range of concessions for other users.​
• A Lime spokesperson told London Centric that the company was “thrilled to continue working with Hackney Council to offer its residents an accessible, affordable service”, underlining Lime’s desire to maintain a strong foothold in one of London’s most cycle‑friendly boroughs.​
• Hackney Council has said the scheme will be accompanied by “tougher measures” to ensure responsible parking so that pavements remain clear and accessible, in line with broader London efforts to curb dockless bike obstruction on streets.
• The move creates a clear local benchmark, with campaigners and observers already speculating that other boroughs may seek similar bus‑fare‑level capping for e‑bikes, either as a transport equity measure or as a potential electoral selling point.
• The Hackney fare undercuts some TfL Santander Cycles pay‑as‑you‑ride rates and many commercial e‑bike tariffs in the capital, strengthening the borough’s reputation for progressive cycling policy.
• Discussions about wider harmonised rules for dockless bikes continue, with TfL and London Councils working to replace what has been described as a “patchwork” of borough regulations that can make longer cross‑borough journeys difficult.
• The announcement follows earlier council decisions and business case work, including a 2022 procurement decision that originally appointed Lime as sole operator for a dockless bike‑share scheme using council‑provided hire bays.

Hackney (East London Times) March 12, 2026 – Hackney residents can now access dockless Lime and Voi bikes for a flat fare of £1.75 per trip within the borough, under a new deal that council leaders say will put e‑bike hire on a par with the cost of a single London bus journey while tightening controls on where bikes can be parked.

How is the new £1.75 flat fare for Lime and Voi bikes structured in Hackney?

In its official announcement, Hackney Council described the new offer as a

“flat fare of £1.75 for dockless Lime and Voi rides”,

promoted as London’s lowest upfront fee for dockless bikes for local residents. As reported by the London‑based outlet London Centric, the flat price will apply to journeys made entirely within Hackney’s boundaries, with the cost benchmarked directly against the current single bus fare.

According to reporting by Christian Calgie of London Centric, the £1.75 cap works differently for the two operators. As Calgie explains, Voi will cap walk‑up fares for rides that take place within Hackney at £1.75 for up to 30 minutes, while Lime will satisfy the council’s flat‑fare requirement through a £45 LimePass+ monthly subscription that ensures every ride in the borough costs no more than £1 when the pass is active.

London Centric’s coverage further notes that this means a journey such as a half‑hour ride from Clapton to Shoreditch would not exceed £1.75 under the new pricing structure, which the council and operators believe will make cycling a more attractive alternative to short bus or train trips.

While early briefings from the companies had suggested that the flat fare might only be available to people who live in Hackney, Calgie reports that the council later clarified it would apply to all journeys contained within the borough, regardless of riders’ home addresses.

Why has Hackney Council agreed an exclusive multi‑year deal with Lime and Voi?

Hackney has a long‑standing relationship with Lime, having previously granted the firm an exclusive licence to operate a dockless bike‑share scheme in the borough following a procurement decision in 2022, set out in council business case documents.

Those papers, considered by the council’s Procurement and Insourcing Committee, endorsed Lime as the sole operator using council‑provided cycle hire bays, laying the groundwork for the latest expanded partnership.

As reported by TransportXtra and its sister title Local Transport Today, Hackney has now shifted to a five‑year contract structure that brings in both Lime and Voi, with overall hire revenue across the life of the deal estimated at around £93m.

In coverage by Ross Lydall for the Evening Standard, cited in subsequent reporting on Yahoo News, sources indicated that the contract would see 2,500 e‑bikes deployed across Hackney, giving residents and visitors a much larger pool of vehicles to choose from.

London Centric’s in‑depth report suggests that the council’s tendering process placed particular emphasis on the share of revenue each bidder was prepared to remit to Hackney, rather than simply the headline size of the potential income stream.

As Calgie reports, Lime and Voi have agreed to share a percentage of all revenue from rides that start in the borough, a model that could deliver millions of pounds to the council over the duration of the contract and that is expected to incentivise Hackney to promote the scheme.

What have Lime and Voi said about the Hackney flat fare and their wider offer?

In a statement reported by Christian Calgie for London Centric, Harry Foskin, Voi’s UK public policy manager, confirmed the firm’s flat‑fare commitment in Hackney. As Calgie records, Foskin said:

“Our flat fare applies to Hackney residents, costing £1.75, matching bus fares. We offer a wide range of concessions which non‑residents travelling in the borough can take advantage of, including day, week, and month passes and our equitable access programme.”​

A spokesperson for Lime also welcomed the new agreement in comments provided to London Centric. As reported by Calgie, the Lime spokesperson stated:

“We’re thrilled to continue working with Hackney Council to offer its residents an accessible, affordable service,”

underlining the operator’s view that the scheme would make cycling easier and cheaper for local people.​

Both companies have also committed to expanding and diversifying their fleets as part of the Hackney package.

Drawing on statements from Hackney Council quoted by both London Centric and Yahoo News, Calgie reports that the council expects Lime and Voi to introduce lighter e‑bike models, machines fitted with child seats and e‑cargo bikes that can transport heavier loads such as groceries or small items of furniture, in order to support a broader range of everyday journeys.

How will parking rules and new bays change the way dockless bikes are used in Hackney?

One of the key conditions of the new agreement is stricter control over where bikes can be left at the end of a journey. As reported by Ross Lydall in the Evening Standard and relayed via Yahoo News, Hackney has stipulated that Lime and Voi bikes must be parked only in designated bays, with the operators facing fines of around £80 for each bike found abandoned on pavements or other unauthorised locations.

Hackney Council has set out a plan to roll out around 400 dedicated dockless parking bays by the end of 2026, a figure cited in Lydall’s reporting on the new deal.

By concentrating parking in marked areas, the council aims to address long‑running complaints about blocked pavements and to ensure that people with mobility needs, parents with buggies and other pedestrians can move more freely.

Statements released by the council and quoted in coverage by London Centric and Yahoo News emphasise that “tougher measures” on bike parking are an integral part of the package.

As Hackney has stressed in its commentary on the scheme, the combination of cheaper e‑bike fares and stricter parking enforcement is intended to show that it is possible to expand shared micromobility while keeping streets “safe and accessible” for everyone.

How does this scheme fit into Hackney’s transport and climate goals?

Hackney is frequently cited by transport commentators as one of London’s most cycle‑oriented boroughs, with high cycling mode share and extensive investment in low‑traffic neighbourhoods and cycle lanes. The borough’s earlier exclusive arrangement with Lime, documented in the 2022 dockless cycle hire business case, reflected its ambition to use shared bikes as a key part of its wider sustainable transport strategy.

By matching the e‑bike flat fare to the cost of a bus journey, Hackney Council is signalling that it wants cycling to be a genuinely affordable everyday option rather than a premium product. In comments quoted by Yahoo News from the council’s leadership, Hackney has said that

“by making e‑bike hire the same cost as a bus fare, we’re supporting more people to take up cycling, while also introducing tougher measures to ensure bikes are parked responsibly and our streets remain safe and accessible.”

The scheme also sits against a backdrop of broader changes in London’s bike‑hire market.

TfL has previously raised some Santander Cycles fees and shifted towards per‑use charges, as reported by transport blogger IanVisits, and has awarded new contracts to operators including Dott, Lime and Voi to run the next phase of the capital’s rental e‑scooter trial, underlining the growing role of shared micromobility in London’s transport mix.

What does this mean for other e‑bike operators and London‑wide regulations?

Hackney’s decision to grant an exclusive contract to Lime and Voi has direct implications for other micromobility companies operating in London. As reported by Ross Lydall and summarised by Yahoo News, Forest – which runs bikes in neighbouring Haringey, Islington and Tower Hamlets – submitted a bid to expand into Hackney but was not selected, meaning its bikes remain unavailable in the borough despite operating just across its borders.

The arrangement also comes at a time when TfL and London Councils are trying to move away from the current “patchwork” of local rules for dockless bikes and scooters. Lydall reports that the two bodies have been working for more than a year on a city‑wide regulatory framework, but quotes a source with detailed knowledge of the process who suggests that a comprehensive set of London‑wide rules is “at least two years away”.

In the meantime, borough‑level decisions such as Hackney’s will continue to shape the market.

As Christian Calgie notes in London Centric, the Hackney deal both underlines the growing financial stakes in the e‑bike sector – with operators competing fiercely for exclusive borough contracts – and sets a benchmark that other councils may now look to replicate, particularly the idea of pegging e‑bike fares to the bus fare as a visible, easily understood offer to voters.

How does Hackney’s £1.75 offer compare to other cycle‑hire prices in London?

In comparative terms, Hackney’s flat £1.75 e‑bike fare appears highly competitive against a range of other London cycle‑hire products. As IanVisits has reported, TfL’s Santander Cycles have seen changes to their pricing structure, including the removal of a daily access fee and rises in some usage charges, making certain longer rides more expensive than they were under earlier schemes.

By contrast, London Centric points out that Hackney’s bus‑fare‑matched cap cuts across the more complex tariffs typically seen in the commercial e‑bike market, giving riders a clear and predictable maximum price for journeys within the borough. The deal also incorporates Lime’s £45 LimePass+ in such a way that heavy users can effectively bring their per‑ride cost below the £1.75 cap, albeit at the cost of a higher upfront monthly commitment.