They would be making more money if they dropped their rates to something more reasonable, even if it is considerably more expensive than what we pay at home.
I have said many times that at home I pay $0.17/kWh and would pay double that for the convenience and the availability of a charging spot.
As much as I'd like to, I can't very well drop an extension cord from the 32nd floor of my apartment building to the street. so I have no choice but to use a public charger. but i draw the line at $0.35/kWh -- I estimate that at roughly $0.25/kWh, gas becomes the cheaper option (even in NYC where gas is PRICEY) but i would pay more b/c it is a privilege to drive electric. but $0.49/kWh? they are shooting themselves in the foot.
I maintain that they would get more use out of the chargers if their rates were more reasonable.
This is a fair point. although it is not so simple. the actual per kWh rate in most commercial buildings in NYC is closer to $0.05/kWh -- where things get screwed up, is the "demand" charges. commercial spaces are known for using a lot more power than residential spaces, so they get a better rate per kWh, but then they get slammed with demand charges, which is a fee for having a ton of power readily available at any given time.
That said, most NYC garages are not running tons of power tools all day long -- unless you count that aging, dusty Pentium 2 machine the attendants use to play minesweeper on during their downtime -- so again, i maintain that my $0.17/kWh rate that I would pay if I could charge at home is MORE than whatever the commercial garage in my building and in the buildings around me pay for power.
$0.49/kWh is price gouging.