Nottinghamshire councillor accuses police of 'not doing enough' to curb e-bike and e-scooter menace

Coun Sam Smith (Con), opposition leader at County Hall, said the authorities need to ‘get stronger’ at using their current powers, which allow police to seize and crush illegal vehicles, and trading standards to shut down businesses selling illegal products.

Coun Smith told the Local Democracy Reporting Service that he wants more data to be collected on ‘hotspots’ so that police can patrol known problem areas and be ready to act.

He also wants to ensure that police tell the council’s trading standards team when they seize an illegal e-bike or scooter, so that the origin of the bike can be traced and those selling the vehicles can be brought to justice as well.

Coun Smith is proposing to bring a motion before full council on September 24.

He said: “We need to get stronger at using the enforcement powers are available.

"The police already have the enforcement powers to chase after these vehicles and seize them and crush them.

"They’re doing it sporadically, but not to the extent that residents expect.

“We need to tighten up the process of the police talking to trading standards too on where that e-scooter or bike was purchased from or shipped from or wherever and then intercept that as well and kill the market that way.

"We’re doing it with vape shops and fake products.

“The motion will try to bring all the enforcement work together. “

Nottinghamshire Police launched Operation Wrangel to crack down on illegal electric bikes and scooters last November.

Coun Smith said working more closely with councillors will allow police to increase patrols in certain hotspots, naming Mansfield town centre as one example.

He said: “There are users of the pavements, whether they’re elderly people walking or young families walking, finding it more and more difficult to stay safe with e-bikes and e-scooters flying past them, cutting them up and being a hazard.

“That has increased over the past year or so and it’s now time to call on the police and trading standards to better use the powers that are available to them to crack down on this and keep our highways safe.

A Nottinghamshire Police spokesperson said: “The success of Operation Wrangel reflects our determination to tackle the problems caused by illegal e-bikes.

“Officers have identified offenders and removed 100 illegal bikes from Nottingham city centre.

“While these results are encouraging, our work is far from over.

"We understand the concerns illegal e-bikes can cause for residents, businesses and visitors and we remain committed to taking action against those who use them illegally and irresponsibly.

“We are continuing to take a proactive approach to this issue.

"Officers involved in Operation Wrangel are sharing their experience and best practice with neighbourhood policing teams in other areas facing similar challenges.

"By working together with our partners and relevant agencies, we will continue to identify effective ways of tackling illegal e-bikes.”