New York Metropolis is testing public e-bike charging stations for supply employees

The brand new charging station at Cooper Sq. within the East Village can be obtainable totally free to 100 supply employees in the course of the pilot program. The town plans to open 4 extra stations in Brooklyn and Manhattan “within the coming weeks.”

New York Metropolis Mayor Eric Adams mentioned, “We rely closely on supply employees, and they need to be capable of depend on us, too – whether or not meaning preventing for honest wages or defending their jobs and livelihoods. “

Poorly made e-bike batteries have been implicated in a number of deadly fires attributable to unsafe charging practices. The hearth division performed spot checks on the areas the place a number of e-bikes have been being charged, discovering that 3 out of the 4 harmful examples have been in residential buildings.

The density of New York Metropolis, in addition to costly rents and excessive prices of dwelling, implies that generally a number of supply employees dwell in the identical residence. The February fireplace, which killed one individual, was attributable to a lithium-ion battery being charged in a unit shared by six supply employees.

There’s additionally the issue of low-cost, low high quality e-bikes and batteries which might be extra prone to explode. There are a number of methods to scale back this threat, similar to buying merchandise with UL security certification. The town mentioned the general public charging stations, geared up with swappable battery methods and locking charging racks, have been reviewed by the New York Metropolis Fireplace Division throughout growth and set up.

Supply employees keen on collaborating in this system can fill out an expression of curiosity kind or attend an onboarding program. The occasions can be held at Cooper Sq. on March 7, 2024 from 2 PM to five PM and at Brooklyn Military Terminal on March 8, 2024 from 2 PM to five PM.