| Topic: | Re:Katherine Dunne's ridiculously expensive e-bike policy | Forum Home |
| Posted by: | Michael Adams | |
| Date/Time: | 01/03/26 20:53:00 |
| Why are Hounslow residents being gouged to use e-bikes? quote: Thursday 31 July 2025 Hounslow Council awarded one of its two e-bike contracts to the operator which offered them the highest fees despite scoring demonstrably lower than rivals on other metrics, City AM can reveal. The move, which has attracted fury from rival operators, lays bare the competing interests of cash-strapped local authorities as they weigh which criteria to prioritise in awarding lucrative e-bike contracts to operators. According to documents seen by City AM, Forest garnered just 45 per cent out of a potential 60 per cent in the crucial ‘quality’ section of its bid, in marked contrast to competitors, one of which reportedly achieved a significantly higher score on quality. But Forest scored 40 out of 40 in the ‘fees’ section of the report – a figure believed to be approximately five times the council’s initial financial expectations. :unquote https://www.cityam.com/forests-hounslow-e-bike-contract-win-sparks-concerns-over-cash-first-tender-model/ So that while Forest score relatively well on cost in London generally as compared with Lime this clearly doesn't apply when they're having to recoup the cost of the an exorbitant upront "fee" in particular locations. Basically just like parking and moving traffic fines, ebikes are seen simply as another source of revenue michael adams |