One of many greatest impediments to a speedy transition from combustion autos to EVs is the dearth of ubiquitous, dependable, high-speed public charging, and there will likely be nobody silver bullet in attaining that aim. As a substitute, a large number of corporations providing completely different options collectively will blanket the nation, and finally, the world. 

Nonetheless, I just lately checked out one such firm, Gravity Charging, a newcomer within the trade that opened up its first charging website a couple of weeks in the past in of all locations, the center of New York Metropolis and it has the potential to be a game-changer. 

I say “of all locations” as a result of if you consider giant electrical automobile DC Quick charging websites, you most likely consider giant parking tons, with the chargers occupying a small nook of all the location.

In New York Metropolis, in addition to in different main cities, actual property is dear, and most parking areas are positioned on the bottom flooring of the buildings and infrequently underground. Moreover, most places cannot present the ability crucial with out costly infrastructure upgrades, however Gravity claims they’ve a means round that drawback. For these causes, there are only a few DC quick chargers in Manhattan. 

That has been an enormous drawback for electrical automobile adoption within the metropolis and different city areas and that is unlucky as a result of the use case for EVs in main cities is much more enticing than it’s for people who dwell within the suburbs or additional out within the nation.

Metropolis dwellers drive fewer miles as a result of every little thing is positioned near the place they dwell and work, a lot in order that many do not personal a automobile in any respect. Subsequently, the decrease common driving vary of an EV will not be a difficulty—however charging it up when wanted is. 

I do know this primary hand as a result of I dwell about 50 miles from New York Metropolis and over the previous 15 years I have been driving my EVs to the town and have by no means had a spot to conveniently cost my automobiles in Manhattan. Revel has charging places in Brooklyn and Queens, however nothing in Midtown, which I usually go to. 

We began with a value of $0.59 per kWh right here, however if you happen to go to certainly one of our (future) websites in an outer borough, the websites that we’ll announce, it would value loads much less, and there will likely be websites which might be very, very low cost… Moshe Cohen, CEO of Gravity Charging 

A part of the issue has been the dearth of house within the garages the place inches matter and lots of places can’t spare the wanted two to 3 ft of house in entrance of the parking spot for the DC Quick charger. Gravity solved that concern with its revolutionary compact chargers which might be wall-mounted up close to the ceiling and permit the autos to drag proper as much as the storage’s wall. Moreover, the ceiling-mounted cable administration system is designed such that the cable can attain any nook of the automobile parked within the spot.

The Gravity Charging Heart is positioned at 401-471 West forty second Avenue, which is only one block from Occasions Sq.. There are twenty-four chargers, every with the flexibility to ship as much as 500 kW and have been examined to supply such energy for a lot of days constantly, in order that’s not a peak energy restrict that the items can solely do for a brief time period. 

Gravity’s 200 kW curbside charging level in entrance of the principle charging heart on forty second avenue in New York Metropolis. 

Throughout my go to, I used to be capable of converse with Gravity’s Founder and CEO, Moshe Cohen, and ask him some primary questions in regards to the firm, corresponding to how are they capable of ship a lot energy with out the necessity to improve the constructing’s electrical infrastructure. 

Cohen defined that the system’s software program intelligently manages the accessible surplus energy of all the block, which at any given time is greater than sufficient to energy the positioning. I might have favored to comply with up on this one particular matter, as a result of I believe there must be a extra detailed rationalization of how that is achieved, however I used to be underneath a time constraint. 

Cohen added the corporate has plans for growth throughout the nation, with places not solely in inner-city garages however public parking tons and in addition curbside charging with Gravity’s pole-mounted charging answer. The pole-mounted charger is a 200 kW unit that has its energy cupboard put in at a distant location.

I’ve already reached out to Gravity to arrange a second interview so I can get a greater understanding of how Gravity’s energy administration software program works. If Cohen can actually repeat what he is completed on forty second Avenue round the remainder of New York Metropolis and different areas of the nation, with out spending a whole lot of hundreds of thousands of {dollars} in utility upgrades, then Gravity has certainly taken an enormous step ahead within the DC quick charging trade.