Bike & e-scooter hire in Manchester
Two schemes, two different sets of rules. Bee Network Cycle Hire bikes are docked, so a ride has to start and finish at an official station, and leaving one outside the zone brings escalating charges. The minimum age is 16 and no licence is needed. Lime's e-scooters are a rental trial in Salford alone. They ask for a driving licence and a rider aged 18, and they are the only e-scooters that may lawfully be ridden on the road. A privately owned one is still illegal. Tickets, passes and contactless are on the Manchester page.
Docked means the vehicle lives in a station and must go back to one. Dockless vehicles park on-street inside app-approved zones.
Bee Network Cycle HireDocked
- Vehicles
- Pedal bikeE-bike
- How you pay
- In the app, on your registered card.
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beryl.cc fetched 23 Jul 2026beeactive.tfgm.com fetched 23 Jul 2026beryl-gbfs-production.web.app fetched 23 Jul 2026 - How you get one
- Docked — pick one up at a station and return it to one. Unlock by app.
- Cost
- Two structures, both metered by ride minutes with no daily/annual membership pass found: (1) Pay As You Ride - a per-unlock charge plus a per-minute rate, charged separately and at a higher rate for e-bikes than standard pedal bikes; a temporary pre-authorisation hold is placed on the rider's payment card to verify funds before a ride starts. Rates change often; the app shows the current price before you unlock.
- Worth knowing
- 16+ · Docking stations are located across parts of Manchester, Salford and Trafford.
- Vehicles
- E-scooter18+ · licence required
- How you pay
- In the app, on your registered card.
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- How you get one
- Dockless — find one on the street through the app. Unlock by app.
- Cost
- Pay-as-you-go: a per-unlock charge plus a per-minute rate, charged as a single combined rate. A separate reduced-rate discount programme is available to eligible residents, and salford.gov.uk separately states discounts are available for jobseekers, students and workers in some employment sectors. Rates change often; the app shows the current price before you unlock.
- Worth knowing
- 18+, driving licence required · Riding is not permitted on footways/pedestrian areas unless cycle use is separately signposted there.