Uber is teaming up with New York-based Revel to help fund an expansion of Revel’s charging infrastructure in exchange for discounts on charging for Uber drivers.
Revel offers an EV-focused rideshare service and NYC charging network. (New Yorkers have likely spotted the bright blue Teslas that make up Revel’s fleet.) It currently has 54 level 3 fast charging stations in Brooklyn and Queens, known as Superhubs, with plans to expand to 500 stations in NYC and the Bay Area by 2025.
But that expansion, which will include 48 public fast chargers at LaGuardia Airport, won’t come cheap, so Uber is making a “financial commitment” to Revel, whereby it’ll guarantee a certain number of charges at existing and future Revel stations in NYC.
Uber will also give Revel “aggregated and anonymized data” to help Revel determine where future charging sites should go.
In return, Uber drivers can get up to 25% off at Revel charging stations. Exactly how much will depend on their status with the Uber Pro rewards program.
The move is intended to incentivize Uber drivers to adopt EVs in cities where it may be hard to find adequate public charging infrastructure, creating so-called “urban charging deserts.” Drivers don’t want to waste precious battery power driving out their way to find a charge.
“Tackling urban charging deserts is an important part of building an all-electric future,” said Andrew Macdonald, SVP of Mobility and Business Operations at Uber. In 2020, the company pledged to become a zero-emission platform by 2040, with a goal of 100% electric vehicles in North America and Europe by 2030.
As Bloomberg reports, the average use of non-Tesla EV charging stations nearly doubled in 2023, from 9% to 18%, enough that some are starting to turn a profit, according to Stable Auto.
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