E-scooters are no longer allowed on all public transport in London over fears they pose a fire hazard.
The ban comes after a review into e-scooters by Transport for London (TfL) found that lithium batteries could cause the electric vehicles to catch fire.
Passengers caught with e-scooters on transport in London – including tube, trains and buses – will now be stopped from boarding and handed a £1,000 fine.
Last month an e-scooter burst into flames on the tube at Parsons Green station. TfL have said incidents like this could lead to “significant harm” to passengers and staff.
“This review has found that the incidents that occurred were caused by defective lithium-ion batteries which ruptured without warning”, TfL said in a statement.
“This led to fires that caused toxic smoke to be released.
“TfL consider that if this were to happen again and fires occurred in an enclosed area like a Tube train or a bus, there could be significant harm to both customers and staff, as well as secondary injuries from customers trying to escape the area.”
The ban has been supported by the London Fire Brigade, who said they have been called out to tackle more than 50 fires involving e-scooters and e-bikes in 2021.
[Image by Andrei Bortnikau via Shutterstock]