Theft of lithium-ion batteries from shared bicycles in Co Dublin “disheartening”

Fingal County Council has asked members of the public to report vandalism of shared bicycles to the Gardai after batteries were stolen from Tier bikes in Balbriggan.

The thefts are one of the first reported from stationless shared bikes in Ireland. Tier told this website that it was vandalism “disheartening” but that they have received an “overwhelmingly positive welcome” across the Fingal area.

The council said: “We are disappointed to report that several @tier_mobility ebikes have been removed from service in Balbriggan as batteries were cut out, making them unusable. The incident is being dealt with by @GardaTraffic. If you see vandalism happening report it to the Gardaí.”

Peadar Golden, Tier Ireland country manager, said: “Since launch we have received an overwhelmingly positive welcome across Fingal County, with many people using our bikes regularly. We do unfortunately sometimes have to deal with vandalism and theft of parts of our vehicles, which is disheartening given the hard work our team puts into ensuring our e-bikes are maintained to a high standard, and has a negative impact on the Fingal residents who have built our bikes into their daily lives.

He added: “We really appreciate Fingal County Council’s support in the matter and would reiterate their call for the public to report anyone they see tampering with Tier e-bikes to keep their distance and report it to the Gardaí.”