This file was at the center of several appeals before the courts and the Council of State since the selection by the Brussels Region, at the end of 2023, from Bolt and Dott as operators of self-service electric scooters. Three electric bike operators had also been appointed.
Shave from the scooter market, Voi and Lime had turned to the Court of Deferement. In January 2024, the latter had already authorized these two operators to continue their activity until their license (Editor’s note: for Lime until July 2, 2025). The Council of State then suspended the decision of the Brussels government itself.
Lime therefore requested a suspension of the application of new operating licenses, announced on December 22, as well as a provisional extension of its previous license. Pending the decision of the judicial court, the fleet of bikes and electric swords Lime was therefore maintained.
No stay for lime
The Council of State refused to follow up on a request for suspension of the system submitted by Lime until the senior instance has spoken on a request for cancellation that the operator has submitted, in the hope of benefiting from a reprieve.
Clearly, Lime has therefore not obtained an exemption to continue to exploit its license beyond its term, scheduled for July 2, 2025. Consequently, the company can no longer operate in the Brussels region since Wednesday.
The courts will now have to rule on the validity or not of the call for candidates which was won by Dott and Bolt at the end of 2023. Lime will therefore no longer be able to operate until a judgment is rendered.
“Despite a clear knowledge of the legal situation, the Ministry of Mobility has continuously refused to grant provisional measures that would have enabled Lime to continue its operations in the region while waiting for the final judgment”, reacted the American company by press release.
La Brussels region requires us to temporarily suspend our service to the rendering of this decision.
“La Brussels region requires us to temporarily suspend our service to the rendering of this decision. This suspension has serious consequences for hundreds of thousands of Lime users in Brussels but also for the more than 130 people employed directly or indirectly. It also exposes the region to a considerable financial risk. If Lime won, the Brussels Region could be liable for several million euros in compensation “.
For the Brussels Minister of Mobility, Lime must respect the expiration date of her license
For Bolt, Dott (scooters) and voi (bikes), the decision rendered on Tuesday “Now confirms, once and for all, the results of this call for tenders … Lime must immediately stop its activities in Brussels and remove its scooters and bikes. We expect from the Brussels region that it takes the necessary measures to apply this decision without delay. It would be unacceptable that operators without valid license, having exhausted all appeals, were allowed to operate again. It would open the door to chaos … “, they argued.
It is also the point of view of the Brussels Minister for Mobility in current affairs, Elke Van den Brandt (Groen). “”Lime must respect the expiration date of his license“, She commented, after having read the judgment.
“The scooters dragging on the sidewalks prevented pedestrians and people with reduced mobility from moving safe and without incident in the city. This is why we have set up dropzones and limited the number of operators” For the safety and comfort of all road users, said the Brussels Minister of Mobility, thus justifying the system adopted by the Region.
According to Ms. Van Den Brandt, the sector itself also asked for a better setting.
“Lime must therefore respect the expiration date of its license. We continue to work to improve the situation in the field”, she said.
Fixed: a first version of this article, based on a Belga dispatch, suggested that the Council of State had spoken on the overall file of the selection by the Brussels Region, at the end of 2023, Bolt and Dott as operators of self-service electric scooters; Which is not the case. The Council of State in its judgment of July 1, however rejected the request from the lime of the granting of provisional measures, of which the Extension of the operator’s license beyond July 2, 2025.
