An uptake in people riding electric bikes has inspired the City of Subiaco to plan to become the first local council in WA to offer exclusive parking for e-bikes.
Its introduction would be part of an amended local planning policy for bicycle parking and end of trip facilities that introduces minimum requirements for e-bike charging facilities.
This would see the city provide a general outlet at bike parking facilities but it would be up to the user to provide their own charging cable.
E-bike parking has been proposed due to an increase in the number of people buying e-bikes since the local planning policy was last reviewed and to promote sustainability.
A council report said e-bikes accounted for 12 per cent of bicycle sales across Australia, compared to just 3 per cent in 2020.
However, the move to include e-bike parking raised concerns from Cr Rick Powell about lithium battery fires sparked by e-rideable chargers.
His fears come after the Department of Fire and Emergency Services said more than 170 blazes had been linked to lithium-ion batteries in the past two years, which can be triggered by defects, overcharging, high temperatures and ageing.
“There is quite a concern about charging any type of lithium battery; isn’t that something we should really be taking into account?,” Cr Powell asked city officers at an agenda briefing.
A city officer said safety considerations would be up to the Building Code of Australia rather than the local planning policy.
“It is a bit difficult for a planning policy to take into account assurances,” he said.
“Most buildings would have standards like testing and tagging electrical hardware. The building would be created in a way that has safety measures in place.
“A planning policy would not be best placed to mitigate those risks.
The council voted unanimously to publicly advertise the changes to bike parking for 21 days before a report comes back to it.