PlugNYC, New Curbside Electric Vehicle Chargers are Being Installed

Some neighborhoods in New York City are welcoming PlugNYC, the city’s new curbside electric vehicle chargers that are being tested as a pilot program run as a partnership between NYC DOT, Con Edison and FLO, one of the largest electric vehicle charging networks in North America. An initial 34 stations with 100 plugs are coming across the five boroughs (plus 4 stations or 20 plugs for the city’s fleet vehicles).

A single FLO charging station will have two level 2 chargers using mid-level voltage that can fully charge an electric vehicle like the Chevy Bolt in four to eight hours, with a rate of about 20 miles per charging hour. Teslas can also be charged with an adapter that comes with all Tesla vehicles. Most home and work chargers are level 2 chargers.

The pricing will be $1.00 per hour from 7PM and 7 AM, and $2.50 per hour from 7 AM to 7 PM. Drivers would download an app, load their credit card information, and scan their smartphone (or a separate tap card). You can also pay via a website. The parking spots in the direct vicinity of the charging station are reserved for electric vehicle charging only — those who are not charging and are not electric vehicles will be ticketed.

Electric vehicle ownership has been challenging in New York City, with most available in chargers in private parking lots where the hourly parking charge can be high or in locations like Whole Foods, where chargers are limited. In addition, the slow rate of charging at some of the previously existing charging stations, and the distance to get to them, meant that the net mileage from a charge not make the trek worth it (we speak from personal experience!).

The pilot program is expected to last four years, and if successful, could expand to thousands of electric charging stations across the city. This weekend, you can catch more demo presentations at some of the local charging sites and below is a map of the distribution of charging stations in New York City so far:

Next, check out how Con Ed’s steam system works in NYC!