Cabinet awarded the Hemel e-bike contract on 22 September and released £1,004,690. The council logged it as not a key decision, and call-in ends on 1 October.

Dacorum’s Cabinet awarded the contract for a Hemel Hempstead electric bike hire scheme on Tuesday 22 September and released £1,004,690 of developer levy money to pay for it.

The operator’s name was not read out. It sits in a Part II report the public cannot see, along with the contract value and the number of bikes.

The meeting lasted half an hour, from 7.30pm to 8pm, and covered the e-bike award and a Building Safety Levy item. There was no public participation and no declarations of interest (printed decisions, 22 September 2026).

What Cabinet actually decided

The decision, published the following day as reference 2696, has four parts:

  • awarded the contract to the preferred bidder, “set out in Part II report”
  • approved the release of £1,004,690 of Core Community Infrastructure Levy funding
  • noted the £500,000 coming from Herts IQ
  • delegated authority to the Assistant Director Planning, in consultation with the Portfolio Holder for Place, “to take operational decisions on the rollout and operation of the scheme”

The fourth point is the one to hold on to. Where the docking bays go, what it costs to hire a bike and how the scheme is run are now officer decisions taken with a portfolio holder. None of that has to come back to a public meeting.

Two things the record says that are worth knowing

The council did not classify this as a key decision. The published record for reference 2696 answers “Is Key decision?: No” while answering “Is subject to call in?: Yes”. A key decision triggers extra publicity requirements and a longer notice period. This one, worth more than £1.5m across two funding streams, did not.

Call-in closes on 1 October. The decision was taken on 22 September, published on 23 September and is effective from 1 October 2026. Until then any group of councillors can call it in for scrutiny. The published count at the time of writing is 0 (decision 2696).

Key dates for the Hemel Hempstead e-bike hire scheme A timeline of seven dates. 3 February 2026: Cabinet approves the start of the procurement process. 24 March to 28 April 2026: the Competitive Flexible Tender is open, scored 80 per cent quality and 20 per cent price. 26 March 2026: Herts IQ announces 500,000 pounds towards the scheme. 1 September 2026: the scrutiny committee supports the award, with the debate held in Part 2 and the public excluded. 22 September 2026: Cabinet awards the contract and releases 1,004,690 pounds. 1 October 2026: the decision becomes effective and the call-in window closes. Before 31 March 2027: mobilisation is planned to take place. Hemel Hempstead e-bike hire: how the decision was reached The operator, the contract value and the number of bikes remain in a confidential Part II report. 3 Feb 2026 Cabinet approves the start of procurement. 24 Mar to 28 Apr Tender open, scored 80% quality and 20% price. 26 Mar 2026 Herts IQ announces £500,000 towards the scheme. 1 Sep 2026 Scrutiny supports it, in Part 2, public excluded. 22 Sep 2026 Cabinet awards the contract, releases £1,004,690. 1 Oct 2026 Decision effective. Call-in window closes. By 31 Mar 2027 Mobilisation planned to take place. Sources: Dacorum Borough Council Cabinet report and printed decisions, 22 September 2026; decision record 2696. Graphic by Hemel Hempstead Live.
How the award was reached, and the two dates that are still open. Graphic by Hemel Hempstead Live.

The promised public engagement comes after the money

The council’s report says the operator “will work with the Council, local stakeholders and residents to ensure the electric bike hire scheme reflects community needs”, and that a communications and engagement plan “will be developed during mobilisation” (Part I report).

Mobilisation is planned to take place before 31 March 2027. So the launch events, cycle training, guided rides and partnerships with local employers all sit after the contract, not before it. The only public sounding so far is the 178-response snap survey of September 2025, in which 54.49% of those who answered said they would not use the scheme. We set out that survey in full when the report was published, in our report on the contract award.

The equality assessment

The published pre-screener concludes that a full Equality Impact Assessment is not required. The form it is written on says something slightly different at the bottom: “if this activity requires cabinet sign off you must complete a full EIA, however if this pre-screener states that a full EIA is not required, please check with the appropriate AD who will sign off if this pre-screen can be submitted instead.”

The pre-screener was completed on 19 August 2026 by Pennie Rayner, Assistant Manager for Infrastructure Planning. It records positive impacts for age, disability, gender, pregnancy and maternity, race and low income, and proposes accessible docks, a reserved parking space, clear wayfinding and the option of cargo or adaptive e-bikes “in later phases” (appendix A).

What it means for you

Nothing changes on the street yet. There are no bikes, no docks and no prices, and there will not be until mobilisation, which has a deadline of 31 March 2027 rather than a start date.

Three things are worth watching, and you will not find them at a council meeting:

  • the operator’s name, which should become public when the contract is signed and published in the council’s contracts register
  • planning applications and licences for the cycle bays, because the report says Traffic Regulation Orders, Public Space Protection Orders and planning permission or licences will be needed for them, and each of those has its own consultation
  • the quarterly budget monitoring reports to scrutiny, which the Section 151 officer has committed to

If you want the decision reconsidered before it takes effect, the mechanism is a call-in by councillors, and the window shuts on 1 October. Contact details for Dacorum councillors are on the council’s own member list.

The route the scheme is meant to serve runs from the station through the town centre to Maylands. If you are driving it instead, our Hemel Hempstead roadworks and travel page has what is closed this week, and our parking in Hemel Hempstead page has what it costs when you get there.

Frequently asked questions

Who will run the Hemel Hempstead e-bike scheme?

The council has not said. Cabinet awarded the contract to “the preferred bidder (set out in Part II report)” on 22 September 2026, and the Part II report is confidential. The operator’s name should become public when the contract is signed and appears in the council’s contracts register.

How much is the Hemel e-bike scheme costing?

Two funding streams are public: £1,004,690 of Core Community Infrastructure Levy money released by Cabinet, and £500,000 from Herts IQ. The contract value itself is in the confidential report. The tender offered bidders scope options of £1,050,000, £1,300,000 and £850,000 over three years.

When will the bikes appear in Hemel Hempstead?

There is no launch date. The council’s report says mobilisation is planned to take place before 31 March 2027, which is a deadline rather than a start.

Can the decision still be stopped?

It can be called in for scrutiny by councillors until it takes effect on 1 October 2026. The published call-in count on the decision record was zero when we checked on 24 September.

How many bikes and docking stations will there be?

Not stated publicly. The tender’s scope options gave indicative minimums of 130 e-bikes and 26 docking locations, or 170 e-bikes and 34 docking locations, depending on which option a bidder chose. Which one the winning bid took is in the Part II report.

Sources