Among the long-term goals of the city of New York is the reduction of emissions in the transport sector, through the adoption of electric cars. One of the main obstacles to this goal is the lack of public recharging infrastructure in a city where 50% of cars are parked on the street.
A public-private collaboration spurred on by the city’s Department of Transport is going to carry out a pilot test to demonstrate this simple concept: if there are more recharging points on the street, more drivers will value the purchase of an electric car. A pilot program involving three companies, two British and one American: Connected Kerb, Char.gy, and Voltpost, will be launched soon.
If we take a look at their web pages (we leave them linked) we will see that they have devised charging solutions on the street taking advantage, whenever possible, of the existing infrastructure. In this way, costs are reduced, wiring is used and installation is facilitated. For example, Volt Post turns the classic streetlight into a charging point.
These charging points have been designed for maximum ease of use. The user of the electric vehicle parks next to it inserts the recharging cable or external charger, passes an RFID subscriber card, and charges. Through the Internet connection of the recharging point, the account is made and the account is charged. Mobile applications allow managing the process on the client side.
The pilot project can spur the installation of 10,000 recharging points by 2030 only on the sidewalks, either by taking advantage of existing infrastructure (such as bollards or lampposts) or by installing new elements. For example, Connected Kerb’s Gecko charging point has its most expensive and critical components underground, leaving what is essential to function above ground.
Another of the objectives of the New York authorities is to have 25% of the municipal parking spaces electrified by 2025. In 2021, some 15,000 electric vehicles had been registered in the city and their number will continue to increase. If the pilot program is successful, it can be used as a precedent in other big cities. Both Connected Kerb and Char.gy already have field use experience in their home country of the UK.
