Photo: Department of Transportation
The municipal parking garage on Essex Street is charged up for a new future. That of electric vehicles.
Last week, the Department of Transportation unveiled four new fast-charging stations in the carpark. The addition on the Lower East Side is the first in a rollout across the city for the technology, which provides an 80-percent charge in 30-60 minutes at a cost of 35 cents per kilowatt-hour.
The goal is to install 24 more of these turbo chargers at other city-owned garages within the next year.
These new charging stations are an upgrade to the infrastructure already installed several years ago. There had been “Level 2” chargers at this garage but were much lower efficiency.
In sum, the city plans to install more than 80 of the fast-charging ports at its garages and lots around the five boroughs by the end of 2025.