Lime Street in London clogged up by a sea of Lime bikes

More than 50 Lime bikes blocked a London road fittingly called Lime Street.

Benedict Simms, 28, snapped a photograph of dozens of the bikes clogging the pavement in central London just after 2pm on Tuesday.

The insurance worker, who estimated there were between 50 and 70 bikes parked on the street, said people could ‘barely walk round’ the mass of bicycles.

He said: ‘At the office there were four bikes in front of the doors, so I could barely get out, then I turned to the right and saw that.

‘In the picture, that was maybe half of the bikes on the street. There was a lorry driver who had to get out and move four bikes just to get out of it – there’s always delivery drivers parked up even though they’re not meant to.’

Benedict said the street is ‘hectic’, especially in the morning when dozens of Lime bikers try to park their cycles in the designated area.

‘You hear a lot of sighs if you stand around that little spot for five minutes. You hear the locals getting pissed off,’ he added.

The Lime app shows the area at the south of the street has now been made a ‘no parking zone’ – warning users they may be fined if they do leave their bike there.

Lime was contacted for comment.

Some London boroughs have announced new measures to target rogue e-bike parking blocking pavements.

E-bikes strewn across pavements have become a familiar sight in London in recent years, with calls growing louder for solutions to tackle the problem.

Last year, the situation in Islington escalated to the point that the borough threatened e-bike operators they would be kicked out of the area if they didn’t address issues like obstructive parking and nighttime noise.  

Lime and Westminster council have signed a new deal designed to keep pavements clear of badly parked dockless e-bikes in the borough.  

Pressure has been cranked up on riders themselves, too, after Lime announced fines for riders who flout the parking rules across London. 

Riders who repeatedly park outside the permitted spaces face fines ranging from £2 to £10.  

Repeat offenders could be banned from using Lime bikes.