Skip to content

Met expands e-bike fleet to tackle phone snatchers

News imageMetropolitan Police Two Metropolitan Police officers in full riding gear and helmets sit on high-powered Sur-Ron police e-bikes in a park, with the Houses of Parliament visible in the background under a clear blue sky.Metropolitan Police
The Sur-Ron bikes are being used in several inner London boroughs

The Metropolitan Police has expanded its fleet of high-powered electric bikes from five to 25 as part of an ongoing crackdown on phone snatchers and moped gangs across London.

The lightweight vehicles allow them to cut through heavy traffic, navigate narrow alleyways, and ride up staircases to catch suspects fleeing areas inaccessible to police cars or motorcycles.

The force said "targeted tactics" helped drive down phone thefts across the capital by more than 13,000 offences over the past year.

Deputy Assistant Commissioner Louise Puddefoot said the e-bike fleet was "a powerful tool to stay one step ahead of criminals".

News imageMetropolitan Police A line of Metropolitan Police officers riding high-powered e-bikes down a paved London road in single file formation, wearing full protective gear and high-visibility jackets.Metropolitan Police
The Met says their fleet is helping target those on illegal e-bikes

The expansion of the Sur-Ron bike fleet is funded by proceeds seized from criminal assets, alongside Home Office funding for specialist rider training in London's West End.

Officers are already using the fleet across central and inner London, including Westminster, Camden, Islington, Hackney, Tower Hamlets, Kensington & Chelsea, and Hammersmith & Fulham.

Met Police figures indicate that overall, neighbourhood crime across London fell by 14% in the 12 months leading to July – representing 33,000 fewer offences.

These include:

  • Thefts from person down 24% (23,455 fewer offences)
  • Personal robberies down 11.2% (2,886 fewer offences)
  • Vehicle offences down 8% (7,336 fewer offences)

So far this year, the force has seized more than 2,500 illegal e-bikes and e-scooters, many of which had been modified with high-powered batteries to reach dangerous speeds.

Listen to the best of BBC Radio London on Sounds and follow BBC London on Facebook, X and Instagram. Send your story ideas to hello.bbclondon@bbc.co.uk