The number of shared electric bikes on Copenhagen’s streets has doubled over the past three years, according to figures reported by Børsen. The city now counts around 15,000 shared bikes spread across several foreign operators, a scale of growth that has prompted at least one local politician to raise the alarm.
Copenhagen bike sharing regulation: a party pushes back
Niels E. Bjerrum, a Social Democrat member of Copenhagen’s city council (Borgerrepræsentationen), has called out the trend, framing public space as one of the city’s scarcest resources and arguing it needs to be treated accordingly. He described the situation as foreign capital funds profiting off Copenhagen’s cycling reputation for their own business gain, speaking to TV 2 Kosmopol.
Bjerrum explained that the Social Democrats’ underlying concern is less about the bikes themselves and more about how much space they take up in the streetscape, along with the sense of unease they can create in traffic when left scattered around. The party is hoping the issue can make its way onto the government’s agenda, specifically to give municipalities more straightforward tools to regulate and control shared bike operators going forward.
Voi Lime Donkey Republic Copenhagen: who runs how many bikes
Copenhagen’s shared bike market is currently split across five operators. Voi and Lime each run roughly 4,000 bikes, Donkey Republic accounts for 3,000, Dott operates 2,700, and Bolt makes up the remaining 1,300.
| Operator | Bikes in Copenhagen |
|---|---|
| Voi | ~4,000 |
| Lime | ~4,000 |
| Donkey Republic | ~3,000 |
| Dott | ~2,700 |
| Bolt | ~1,300 |
| Total | ~15,000 |
