If you are fortunate enough to own a single-family home, the experience of driving an electric vehicle can be truly transformative. Each morning, you wake up to a world full of boundless opportunities, with your car fully charged and ready to take you wherever you need to go.
However, the reality for many EV owners in big cities is not so idyllic. Without access to a garage or driveway, they are forced to rely on public fast chargers. Some have even resorted to risky measures, such as stringing cables from their homes to the curb. In cities like Cambridge, Massachusetts, this practice has been formalized with permits for wheelchair-friendly cable protectors to span the sidewalk. While these efforts emulate the convenience of single-family homeowners, they are only temporary solutions at best.
In contrast, the humble lamppost may hold the key to a better solution. Lampposts are ubiquitous and already equipped with the necessary wiring to support curbside charging. New York City-based startup Voltpost has been working on a product that retrofits existing street lampposts for EV charging. After a year of design and development, they have now launched their lamppost charger.
The device is essentially a shroud that covers the lower part of the pole, housing all the necessary electronics and cables to charge two to four EVs at Level 2 speeds. While not as fast as other charging options, this is still sufficient for most people to top off their vehicle overnight.
The Voltpost charger docks at hand-level on the lamppost shroud, with a retractable cable and an anchor eight feet above to keep it off the ground. The design is modular, making repairs and upgrades easier. Charge station managers have access to custom software for pricing control and remote monitoring of the devices.
As with most EV charger networks, there is also an accompanying app for overseeing charging sessions and making payments. Drivers can even use the app to reserve chargers, a convenient option that may spark some tension among neighbors over “dibs” or “savesies.”
According to Voltpost, their chargers can be installed quickly, with a test showing an hour completion time with the New York City Department of Transportation. The company also has projects underway in various stages of development and deployment in cities like New York, Chicago, and Detroit. In July, they announced a successful $3.6 million seed round of funding.
