Well, that does make sense, given that NYC’s five boroughs are so overcrowded that drivers mostly park their cars at the curb. The city’s Department of Transport (DOT) believes that by enabling EV drivers to charge their cars when they – I’m sure not without effort – find a curbside parking spot, it can further encourage the adoption of electric vehicles. The project is called “PlugNYC” and aims to install 120 Level 2 charging ports at curbside locations across the five boroughs. Among them, 100 will be for public use, and the remaining 20 will serve the city’s fleet of electric vehicles. EV owners will pay for their car’s juice on an hourly basis by smartphone, tap card, or on the program website. According to The Wall Street Journal, the new city chargers will cost $2.50 per hour during the day and $1 per hour overnight. PlugNYC is funded by a grant from the New York State Public Service Commission, and will run in partnership with the American energy company Consolidated Edison. The two partners will select curbside locations based on projected demand for charging, geographic diversity, and input from local elected officials and community stakeholders. With the current number of public charging stations in NYC below 1,500, the curbside ports can only be a good thing. But anyway, you’ll need to curb your enthusiasm a little: the chargers will be in place for four years as part of a demonstration project, which will include an evaluation period. So who knows what will happen next. For more information, you can check out NYC DOT’s website. Do EVs excite your electrons? Do ebikes get your wheels spinning? Do self-driving cars get you all charged up? Then you need the weekly SHIFT newsletter in your life. Click here to sign up.
