NYC picks Brooklyn startup for 700 curbside EV chargers — SkimNews
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- NYC DOT selected it's electric to supply hardware for the PlugNYC network, deploying nearly 700 Level 2 charging points across all five boroughs over three years and replacing the existing 88-point pilot with 600 new plugs plus the current inventory.
- The chargers will be manufactured in Queens, with Maverick Corporation handling engineering and construction and SWTCH Energy providing the software platform; NYC DOT is working with the New York Power Authority on procurement and installation.
- Each PlugNYC station will carry a minimum of two charger posts with two plugs each (four charging points), with initial sites concentrated in dense, street-parking-heavy neighborhoods including Red Hook, Bedford-Stuyvesant, the Upper West Side, Washington Heights, Rego Park, and Soundview.
- Existing curbside chargers are already occupied by an EV more than 70% of the time, approaching 99% at some locations — a utilization rate that drove the city to prioritize street-parking neighborhoods where half of NYC car owners live.
- The buildout supports NYC's Green Rides mandate that 100% of Uber and Lyft trips be in zero-emission or wheelchair-accessible vehicles by 2030; rideshare drivers already complete roughly 3 million EV trips per month, per NYC DOT.
- NYC DOT will retain control over pricing, billing drivers per kilowatt-hour through multiple apps or credit-card tap, and sites will where possible bundle e-bike charging, electrified bike-share docks, secure bike parking, or cargo-bike hubs.
- It's electric announced a new funding round led by Halogen Ventures that brings its total funding to $15 million; the company, headquartered at Newlab in the Brooklyn Navy Yard, also operates in Los Angeles, San Francisco, Detroit, Washington, DC, and Boston.
Why it matters: With existing curbside chargers already hitting near-full utilization and roughly half of NYC car owners dependent on street parking, the 700-plug rollout directly unlocks home-charging access for residents who can't install a driveway charger — while giving rideshare drivers the infrastructure needed to hit the city's 2030 zero-emission fleet deadline.
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