Sept. 17, 2019. By Shane O’Brien
The city is set to remove 100 parking spaces throughout New York City and replace them with charging stations for electric cars.
The DOT will install 50 public charging stations across the city next year as part of a four-year pilot program. Each station will be able to charge two electric cars and will result in the loss of two parking spaces.
The Department of Transportation has announced that it is planning to install 14 stations in Queens with a total of 28 charging spaces.
The DOT is looking to install four charging stations in Astoria; two stations in Jackson Heights; two stations in Elmhurst; two in Richmond Hill; and two in Springfield Gardens.
It also plans to install two charging stations across Long Island City and Sunnyside in the vicinity of Queens Boulevard and 34th Street.
Installations are slated to begin in spring next year and the DOT said that it will be installing stations in all five boroughs.
The charging stations will provide an electric car with a full charge in four to eight hours, according to the DOT. Electric car owners will be charged for every hour they use the charging stations, but prices are yet to be announced by the DOT.
The DOT says that transportation is responsible for almost 30 per cent of the city’s greenhouse gas emissions and that increasing the number of electric cars is a key part of the city’s effort to fight climate change.
The DOT will select specific locations based on the demand for electric cars in the area. It will also consider input from elected officials and local stakeholders. The DOT said that it has already briefed 12 community boards in Manhattan, Brooklyn, Queens and the Bronx about the charging stations.
(DOT)
In addition, the DOT created an online feedback portal where over 500 members of the public have already submitted comments regarding where chargers should and should not be located.
There are nearly 9,000 electric vehicles registered in New York City and over 3,000 of them are in Queens, according to DOT data.
Manhattan has just under 3,000, while there are 1,750 registered electric cars in Brooklyn. There are 850 electric cars on Staten Island and only 476 in the Bronx.
This program will be the first ever curbside electric vehicle charging program in New York City.
Con Edison, an energy investment company, is providing funding for the installation, maintenance and operation of the charging stations.
