Overview
You'll never run out of juice in the Big Apple again, thanks to a new kind of public seating popping up around the city. Over the next 30 days, the Parks Department in Manhattan will unveil five solar-powered park benches that double as mobile charging stations for New Yorkers on the go.
Developed by the MIT Media Lab, Soofa Benches come fitted with solar panels and a pair of USB charging ports, where pedestrians can plug in their phone or tablet for a much needed top-up. The first of the three person benches will be installed at Highbridge Park in the Bronx next week, with the rest due to pop-up over the course of the coming month.
"We are super-excited about New York City," Soofa CEO and co-founder Sandra Richter told New York Daily News. "People are staying outside longer and using parks as their backyards. The Soofa benches are a perfect fit."
Soofa Benches are already in use in a number of US cities, including Los Angeles and Boston. In addition to providing the public with a handy place to recharge, they can also keep track of park visitor numbers by counting Wi-Fi enabled devices as they go by.
Via NY Daily News.