Thames Valley PCC says police are responding to public concerns about dangerous e-bikes
The number of e-bikes confiscated across the region has more than doubled in the last year
Thames Valley Police has been stepping up enforcement against dangerous e-bikes in response to concerns from residents, the Police and Crime Commissioner has said.
Matthew Barber said the force was responding to concerns around road safety, particularly the danger posed to pedestrians by people riding on pavements, as officers increasingly target these vehicles.
The comments come after figures showed Thames Valley Police seized 425 e-bikes between May 2025 and May 2026, up from 163 the previous year.
Mr Barber said the increase has been aided by a reorganisation of the force.
"We've put more officers into neighbourhood policing teams where they're able to run specific operations in known hotspots and make a real effort to get some of the most dangerous riders off of our roads," he said.
The commissioner said there were a wide range of vehicles being seized, with some e-bikes perfectly legal to own but being used illegally, while others were illegal to use in public altogether.
One particular concern is the number of bikes being illegally modified to reach much higher speeds.
Mr Barber said police were seeing ordinary push bikes modified to travel at speeds of 40 or 50mph.
“The bikes were never designed for that,” he said, warning that their frames may not be constructed to cope with such speeds.
He said the use of modified bikes at these speeds could endanger pedestrians as well as other road users.
Insurance is another issue, with Mr Barber saying a significant number of vehicles being seized cannot be insured.
He said there was an argument for the Government to change the rules around insurance, particularly because people involved in collisions with uninsured riders could be left concerned about how they would be protected.
But the PCC said the issue goes beyond road safety.
While responding to complaints about dangerous riding, officers can also encounter e-bikes being used in connection with other offences.
Mr Barber said there was a correlation between criminals involved in activities such as drug dealing and the use of e-bikes to get around.
That means enforcement against illegal bikes gives police a chance to tackle wider criminal activity.
“It’s also an opportunity to bear down on other criminals who commit further offences in the community,” Mr Barber said.