Hackney birdsong? Stolen Lime bikes the new sound of summer in the city | Cycling

BIP, BIP, BIP, BIP, BIP, BIP. Was it exhausting to read? Well, imagine if this noise was the soundtrack of your summer.

The anger of many city dwellers this year, it is. The piercing and persistent sound, something that is similar to a half-school fire alarm that you have accidentally triggered, has been everywhere. Its origin? Lime bikes, in particular the stolen variety.

The bikes, which have become omnipresent in London and other cities, cost 27p per minute to roll, more unlocking costs of £ 1 in the capital. Those who hope to move without paying a penny have used more nasty (and noisier) ways to do so.

There are video tutorials available online on how to enter lime electric bikes. When someone manages to get around their lock and roll for free, it emits a continuous beep, a beep, a beep.

Noise is supposed to be a means of deterrence – an advertising sound for all those who go through the fact that the rider is a cheating – but considering how widespread he has become, it seems that stimulating a bicycle has not only become an acceptable action plan, but even a lifestyle choice.

A sweet Friday afternoon at Clissold Park Lush and Le Feuillu in eastern London, I played the beep, the beep, the beeps to sun researchers, who recognized it instantly. During our conversation, offended electric bikes accelerated people, including children, along the park paths.

Ellie Roberts said he heard the her daily, describing her as the “hackney birds song”.

“I don’t stand up but it bothers me,” said Roberts, 47, who works in advertising. “This is an indication of low -level crime on a continuous basis.”

His friend, Sinead McKenna, 49, more likes the persistent sound. “I like it, it’s the sound of summer,” said the solicitor.

Schoolchildren are often seen whistling on beep bikes, despite the ban on under 18s from using the service. “I really like [the sound] Because I think if I was a child, that’s what I would do, “said McKenna laughing.” This is the fact that Lime earns a lot of money and they have responsibility. I don’t blame children.

There was little sympathy for lime. “Why can they earn money in public space?” said Sebastian Eyre, 34, who runs a pizza company. “I don’t really mind [the sound] Because they are usually children. The lime did their harm, so let the children have a free ride. »»

Eyre, who lives in Sydenham, said he heard the dreaded beep, the beep, the beep “sometimes a day”. He believes that in his south-eastern pocket of London, stolen bikes “nine times out of ten”, depending on the frequency he hears the sound.

A small walk outside the park, on a road where cafes and bakeries which are the business card of gentrification are lying, lime bikes were also seen whistling from top to bottom.

Dressed in Lycra and a bicycle helmet rarely seen on those who took place on lime electric bikes, John Villeneau said that there was a “massive increase” of the number of them available in the region.

“If you are simply going to one of the pubs, there were a group of 10 bikes outside. Now there are like 50. There are only hundreds of bikes outside on Friday evening because everyone limes and limes,” said the 59 -year -old non -provisional lawyer.

He said he heard the beep, the beep, the beep, but that doesn’t bother him. “If you have to take a lemon bike and not pay for it and you have to endure this noise yourself, who cares? I don’t care,” he said.

He gave a boost to electric bikes, but he is not a big fan. “I am not lively. They are expensive and I cannot be disturbed. The last two times, I have set them up in town, you have to go to a designated place and all these bullshit. ”

Jane, 68, former teacher, who did not want to provide her last name, visited Clissold Park for the first time in more than a year after leaving the region.

She said that she had heard the beep, the beep, the bip sound twice since she entered the park. The current stereotype seems to be that it is only young boys who aboundly lead the electric bikes, but Jane thinks that it is incorrect.

“I don’t think they are just young people, I don’t think they are just young boys or young men. I think it’s everyone, ”she said. “When you get on these bikes, everyone becomes very selfish.”

A spokesperson for Lime said: “We know that the vast majority of people use our bikes in a responsible manner, and we take stolen cases, damaged or poorly used very seriously. Previously, our material team has successfully completed several targeted improvements to prevent fraudulently used bikes.

“We are developing new measures to counter the latest attempts to damage and fraudulently use vehicles. We also work with TFL and the local authorities to keep offenders to account and we urge the public to report the incidents they see, including time and place, so that we can take the appropriate measures. ”