An investigation is underway in Birmingham after several Lime e-bikes and scooters overheated, with one reportedly emitting smoke, on Navigation Street. The incident, which occurred outside New Street station, prompted a call to West Midlands Fire Service, who quickly moved the dangerously hot vehicles to a shaded area.
Firefighters and Lime, the hire company, have both indicated that the cause appears to be the intense glare reflecting from the mirrored exterior of Birmingham's Grand Central building. A spokesperson for Lime stated that, based on information from the fire service, the overheating was "not due to an issue with our hardware" but was "linked to heat radiating from the reflective surface of a nearby building". This assessment was echoed by West Midlands Fire Service, which ruled out a battery fault.
The incident highlights a long-standing issue with the Grand Central building's design. Reports from as far back as 2016 detailed how the building's mirrored facade created intense "hot spots" and caused visibility problems for commuters. On Thursday, BBC News recorded a surface temperature of 43C in the affected area using an infrared temperature gun, approximately 11C higher than Birmingham's forecast maximum temperature for the day.
Passers-by described the heat in the area as extreme. Aamina Omar, who was in the vicinity, likened walking under the hot spot to "being hit with some sort of tornado" and expressed no surprise that e-bikes were overheating. Leon Trimble, another local, acknowledged the building's architecture but questioned its practicality given rising temperatures, suggesting shelters for bikes if they are to be regularly parked there.
In response to the incident, West Midlands Fire Service has liaised with Birmingham City Council, which is understood to be contacting Lime about relocating the e-bike drop-off point away from the affected area. Network Rail, responsible for Grand Central, confirmed it is working with both Lime and Birmingham City Council "to understand what happened".