In this guide
Cycling is the fastest way to cover central London at street level, and the hire schemes make it possible without owning anything. The rules, though, are genuinely confusing — and one of them will get your vehicle impounded.
Start with that one.
⚠️ The rule that catches visitors out: a privately owned e-scooter is illegal to ride anywhere in public in the UK. Not just on pavements — on roads and in cycle lanes too. It does not matter that shops sell them, or that you see people riding them daily. If you ride one you can be fined, given penalty points on your driving licence, and have the scooter impounded. Only rental e-scooters from an official trial scheme are legal, and only in participating areas.
💡 The Short Version: Santander Cycles cost from £3.50 a day and are docked. Forest and Lime are dockless e-bikes you unlock with an app — Forest is £1 to unlock with up to 30 minutes included. Rental e-scooters are legal in some boroughs but need a driving licence. Private e-scooters are illegal. Helmets are not compulsory for anyone.
What each option costs
| Option | Cost | Best for |
|---|---|---|
| Santander Cycles day pass | From £3.50 a day, unlimited 60-minute rides | A full day of short hops in Zone 1 |
| Santander single ride | From £1.65 for 30 minutes | One journey |
| Santander e-bike | +£1 per journey on a pass, or £3 for 30 minutes | Hills and longer distances |
| Forest e-bike | £1 to unlock, up to 30 minutes included | Short one-way trips |
| Lime e-bike | Unlock fee plus a per-minute rate — check the app | Availability outside Zone 1 |
| Rental e-scooter | Per-minute, and you need a driving licence | Legal only in participating boroughs |
Santander Cycles: the docked scheme
The red bikes in the docking stations, run by Transport for London. They are still called Santander Cycles — the scheme has been renamed before, and guides using an old sponsor name are a good sign they have not been updated.
What you pay
Verified from TfL’s own fares page:
- Day Pass — from £3.50. Unlimited rides of up to 60 minutes each. Over 60 minutes, £1.65 for each additional 60.
- Single ride — from £1.65 for up to 30 minutes, then £1.65 per additional 30.
- Monthly Pass — from £20. Annual Pass — from £120.
- E-bikes: add £1 per journey on any pass, or £3 for up to 30 minutes as a single ride.
The old “first 30 minutes free” is gone. That was the scheme’s defining feature for years and it is what most guides still say. The Day Pass now carries 60-minute rides instead, which is better value for a visitor but works completely differently.
How it works
Dock the bike within your ride window and take another one out. With a Day Pass and 60-minute rides, that is effectively unlimited cycling for £3.50 as long as you re-dock every hour. Rides are counted from dock to dock, not from when you decide to stop.
- Hire from the app, with a £3 membership key, or at a terminal on the street.
- E-bikes cannot be hired from a terminal — app or key only.
- You can take out up to 4 bikes at once on one payment, but not e-bikes.
- If the docking station is full, choose “No docking point free” at the terminal for an extra 15 minutes to reach another one.
- Maximum hire is 24 hours. Keep a bike longer than that, or damage it, and you can be charged up to £300.
The docking stations thin out considerably beyond Zone 1, which is the scheme’s main limitation.
Forest and Lime: dockless e-bikes
App-unlocked e-bikes left on the street rather than in docks. They reach much further out than Santander Cycles, and you end the ride wherever you finish.
Forest is the London-based one. Pay-as-you-go is £1 to unlock with up to 30 minutes included, though the included time depends on the bike — their own site says to check in the app before you ride. They also sell prepaid bundles.
Lime has the largest fleet and the widest coverage. It prices with an unlock fee plus a per-minute rate that varies by area and demand, so there is no fixed figure worth printing — check the app.
We are not quoting a per-minute price for Lime deliberately. Dockless operators change pricing frequently and by location, and a number published today would be wrong within weeks. The app shows your actual fare before you unlock.
Parking is where the money goes
Ending a ride outside a designated bay is the most common way to get charged extra. Several London boroughs have cracked down on pavement clutter and now require bikes to be left in marked parking bays. The app will show you the bays and will usually refuse to end the ride outside one, or charge a penalty if it does.
Never leave a bike blocking a doorway, a driveway, a shopfront or a dropped kerb — that is what caused the crackdown.
E-scooters: the law, properly explained
This is the section worth reading twice, because the situation is genuinely counterintuitive.
Private e-scooters are illegal
It is against the law to use a privately owned e-scooter on public land. Roads, pavements, cycle lanes, parks — all of it. They can legally be bought, and legally ridden only on private land with the owner’s permission.
Ride one in public and you face a fine, penalty points on your driving licence, and the scooter being impounded.
Rental e-scooters are legal, in some places
Rental e-scooters from an official government trial scheme are legal, and London is on the list of trial areas — though only in participating boroughs, not city-wide. If you cross out of a participating borough the scooter will usually slow itself or stop.
You need a driving licence. This is the requirement visitors most often do not expect:
- A provisional or full UK driving licence with category Q entitlement, which you have automatically if your licence covers AM, A or B.
- With a full EU licence, you are fine, provided it does not prohibit low-speed mopeds and motorcycles.
- With a full licence from any other country that lets you drive a small vehicle, you are fine for 12 months after entering the UK.
- An overseas provisional licence or learner permit is not accepted at all.
The riding rules
- Maximum 15.5mph, and lower in some zones.
- Never on the pavement.
- On roads (not motorways) and in cycle lanes, plus cycle ways signed for shared use unless a sign says otherwise.
- One rider only. No passengers, no towing.
- No phone in your hand. Set navigation up before you set off.
- Helmets are recommended but not legally required.
- Third-party insurance is provided by the rental operator. It is not provided for a private scooter, which is part of why riding one is an offence.
Rules for cycling, and what they cost you
- Helmets are not compulsory in the UK, for cyclists or rental e-scooter riders. Hire schemes do not supply them.
- Lights are legally required after dark — white front, red rear. Hire bikes have them built in and lit whenever the wheels turn.
- Cycling on the pavement is an offence and carries a fixed penalty.
- Red lights apply to bicycles. So do the advanced stop boxes at junctions — the painted area ahead of the traffic is yours.
- In the Royal Parks, stay on the designated cycle routes. Hyde Park and Kensington Gardens have marked routes and Regent’s Park has the Outer Circle. Riding off them is an offence and is enforced.
- Buses and lorries are the real hazard. Never pass a long vehicle on its left at a junction.
Where it is actually pleasant to ride
Central London traffic is not the whole picture. These are traffic-free or near enough:
- Regent’s Canal — Little Venice through Camden to King’s Cross and on to Victoria Park. Flat, car-free and one of the best routes in the city. Ride slowly; it is shared with walkers and the towpath is narrow under bridges.
- The Thames Path — long stretches are ridable, particularly west from Putney and east through the Docklands.
- Hyde Park and Kensington Gardens — the marked routes join up into a genuinely long ride.
- The Cycleways network — London’s signed cycle routes, many now physically separated from traffic. CS3 along the Embankment is the best-known and runs east–west along the river.
- Richmond Park — the finest cycling in London, with deer and hills. See our Richmond guide.
What to know
- Contactless works for Santander Cycles at the terminal, so you can hire without downloading anything.
- Cycle hire is not covered by the Tube daily cap. It is a separate charge on a separate system.
- You can take a folding bike on the Tube at any time, and a full-size bike only on some lines outside peak hours. See getting around London.
- Docking stations fill up in the centre at rush hour. The app shows free spaces in real time.
- Rain changes everything. London’s roads are slick, and the painted markings and metal covers are the slippery parts.
- If you only want the views, the river bus is a better ride than a bike. See how to use London’s river boats.
Continue planning your London trip
- 🚇 Getting Around London
- 💷 London Transport Costs and Fares
- 🎫 Oyster Card Guide
- ⛵ How to Use London’s River Boats
- 🌳 Best Parks and Gardens in London
- 🚶 London Walks Along the Thames
Fares and rules checked against Transport for London and GOV.UK in August 2026. Dockless operators change pricing frequently — check the app before you unlock.
Common questions
Are e-scooters legal in London?
Rental e-scooters are legal in participating London boroughs as part of a government trial. Privately owned e-scooters are not — it is against the law to ride one on any public land in the UK, including roads, pavements and cycle lanes. The penalties are a fine, penalty points on your driving licence and the scooter being impounded.
Do I need a driving licence to hire an e-scooter in London?
Yes. You need a provisional or full UK driving licence with category Q entitlement, which comes automatically with categories AM, A or B. A full EU licence works, as does a full licence from another country if you entered the UK within the last 12 months. An overseas provisional licence or learner permit is not accepted.
How much are Santander Cycles in London?
A Day Pass is from £3.50 and covers unlimited rides of up to 60 minutes each, with £1.65 for each additional 60 minutes. A single ride is from £1.65 for up to 30 minutes. E-bikes add £1 per journey on a pass, or cost £3 for up to 30 minutes as a single ride.
Do you have to wear a helmet to cycle in London?
No. Helmets are not a legal requirement for cyclists or for rental e-scooter riders in the UK, though they are recommended. Hire schemes do not provide them, so bring your own if you want one.
Can you cycle in London's Royal Parks?
In most of them, on designated routes rather than everywhere. Hyde Park and Kensington Gardens have marked cycle routes, and Regent's Park has the Outer Circle road. Look for the signs — cycling off the permitted routes is an offence in the Royal Parks and is enforced.
