Queens drivers get 10 fast EV chargers in Forest Park: hours, rates, time limit
The city's biggest public charging site sits near the Forest Park bandshell, open daily between 7 a.m. and 9 p.m. at 30 to 35 cents per kilowatt, one hour max.
Ten fast chargers for electric vehicles opened Tuesday, Sept. 22, in Forest Park, Queens, close to the George Seuffert, Sr. Bandshell. Officials said it is the biggest public charging site the city operates anywhere in the five boroughs.
NYC Parks and the Department of Citywide Administrative Services cut the ribbon together. DCAS put $2.7 million into the project. Another $472,000 came from Con Edison, drawn from the New York Power Ready program.
Forest Park EV charging hours and price
Drivers can plug in every day between 7 a.m. and 9 p.m., and each person can use a charger for up to an hour. Off-peak charging costs 30 cents per kilowatt and peak charging 35 cents, prices the city set to keep the station affordable. Two of the ten units are designed for accessibility.
Because so few New Yorkers have a driveway or garage, charging an electric car here is a particular challenge, DCAS Commissioner Yume Kitasei said. Putting chargers in an attractive park, she said, makes owning an EV “more affordable and more pleasant.” Mark Focht, NYC Parks’ first deputy commissioner, said the station is in line with the agency’s sustainability agenda.
How many public chargers the city runs
With the new site, DCAS runs 451 fast chargers citywide, and most of them power the city’s own electric fleet. Just 26 of the chargers the agency has installed are open to the public, and it expects to add 34 more public ones within the next 18 months.
Keith Kerman, a DCAS deputy commissioner who serves as the city’s chief fleet officer, said the station is also aimed at the many taxi and rideshare drivers based in Queens. The Taxi and Limousine Commission has 180,000 drivers, and officials said over one-third of them live in the borough. For those drivers, the park offers a handy place to recharge at the start of a shift, in the middle of one or once it ends, according to TLC Deputy Commissioner James DiGiovanni. The commission also has a 2030 target under its Green Rides initiative: every rideshare trip handled by a vehicle that is either accessible or produces zero emissions.
Quick answers
What are the hours of the Forest Park EV charging station?
Charging is available every day between 7 a.m. and 9 p.m., and each driver can use a charger for up to an hour.
How much does it cost to charge at Forest Park?
Off-peak charging is 30 cents per kilowatt, and peak charging is 35 cents per kilowatt.
Where is the station?
In Forest Park, Queens, close to the George Seuffert, Sr. Bandshell.
