NEW YORK
GetCharged, Inc. (Charge), a micromobility company dedicated to building the largest network of electric charging, storage, and service stations for e-scooters and e-bikes, recently unveiled New York City's first-of-its-kind docking station in Worth Square located at 200 5th Ave (on Broadway, between 24th and 25th).
The demo location represents one of more than 400 secured New York Metro locations ready to deploy Charge's micromobility docking stations, providing the necessary infrastructure for when electric scooters are deployed later this year.
Cities around the globe continue to embrace micromobility as an option to ease pressures on public transportation and congestion. However, significant pitfalls remain with the dockless model, such as cluttered streets and sidewalks and the risk of fire when charging multiple scooters in residential buildings. Charge provides vital infrastructure for riders and rideshare operators by offering a convenient place to charge and store e-vehicles, helping protect the integrity of city streets and keeping pedestrians and residents safe, commented Andrew Fox, Charge Co-Founder and CEO. We are thrilled to unveil our state-of-the-art docking station in New York City as a workable solution to alleviate the concerns with bringing micromobility to New York and beyond.
To date, Charge has entered into numerous agreements with leading garage operators and property owners across North America, including some of the largest and fastest-growing parking companies in the United States. Charge's indoor, outdoor and pop-up mobile docking stations are designed to be compatible with most brands of e-scooters. The company has secured a growing network of over 3,000 locations ready to install its e-scooter and e-bike docking stations to address the significant shortcomings of the existing dockless micromobility rideshare platforms. Charge continues to pursue its business development efforts to grow its network of locations throughout North America and Europe.
As New York City continues to grow, so must access to different modes of transportation, in all reaches of the five boroughs, said Council Member Paul Vallone. These charging stations, compatible with e-bikes and e-scooters, would help ensure our City sidewalks and streets remain clear, organized and safe while encouraging the use of innovative transportation solutions.
Micromobility has to be part of the solution for New York City's traffic congestion and public transit challenges, said Council Member Fernando Cabrera. But we want to do this right. We've learned from the experiences of other cities that have legalized e-bikes and e-scooters that docking and charging stations must be part of this solution. Having docking stations lets riders safely leave the e-vehicles out of the way of pedestrians, kids, the disabled and motorized vehicles. This is absolutely necessary to ensure safety and effective use.
The pilot program will allow us to get feedback from New Yorkers who have embraced the benefits of micromobility. It will also allow us to see what kind of impact these stations will have in the surrounding communities, said Council Member Ydanis Rodriguez, Chairman of the Transportation Committee. I will continue to work alongside my colleagues at the Council to ensure we embrace the many benefits micromobility brings to the City.
Fox testified in support of the legalization of electric scooters and bikes in New York on June 7th. The New York State Senate and Assembly have since passed Senate Bill S5294A, which will be delivered to the governor to sign later this year.
