Short on curbside chargers, New York EV drivers are improvising

Sitting behind the wheel of her gray Tesla Model Y, Brooklyn resident Stephanie Doba uses her phone to punch the make, model and license plate number...

Sitting behind the wheel of her gray Tesla Model Y, Brooklyn resident Stephanie Doba uses her phone to punch the make, model and license plate number of a Toyota Camry into New York City’s online form for reporting illegal parking. Prompted to describe the issue, she answers with voice-to-text: "Gas car parking at electric vehicle charging station.”

Doba estimates she’s made at least 10 such reports since New York City set up curbside EV chargers near her Park Slope home three years ago. A self-appointed guardian of sorts, Doba some days walks to the tree-lined street where the public plugs are installed just to check if they’re being ICEd - EV-speak for when curbside chargers are blocked by internal-combustion cars. She never hangs around to see if her complaints result in tickets, but believes enough reports could convince the city to boost enforcement.

Doba’s frustration is familiar to many of the New York City area’s intrepid EV converts. The city has announced plans to install 40,000 Level 2 plugs, which can provide an EV with a full charge in about four to eight hours, and 6,000 fast chargers by 2030. But today there are around 2,200 public plugs citywide, 10% of them fast chargers, according to the US Department of Energy. Uneven distribution means even infrequent issues with damaged equipment or blocked spots can have an outsized impact. When the city reviewed usage data across 100 Level 2 chargers, it found an average utilization rate of 72% so far this year. It also found that over the past 18 months, gas cars blocked the chargers 20% of the time.

"People need to know that they’re hurting actual people when they block a charger,” Doba says. "It’s like if you parked your car at a gas pump and [walked] away.”

New York City aims to reduce vehicle emissions as part of its goal of reaching net zero by 2050, by which point the city also wants electric cars to account for 20% of new vehicle registrations. Getting there will require a robust and reliable charging network: While 80% of US EV drivers charge at home, according to the DOE, about half of NYC’s drivers depend on street parking.