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Brooklyn-based startup PopWheels launched a six-month pilot in July in Queens, New York, allowing 10 food cart vendors to swap gas generators for shared batteries at street-side charging cabinets, funded by roughly $77,000 in grants. Vendors report lower costs and less noise, though current batteries cannot power high-draw operations like ice cream trucks, and the long-term subscription pricing is not yet proven.
A Brooklyn-based startup called PopWheels is testing a battery-swapping model that lets New York City food cart vendors drop their gasoline generators in exchange for shared, swappable batteries — a six-month pilot launched in July in Queens’ Flushing Meadows Corona Park area with 10 participating street vendors, according to a report by Canary Media. The pilot, backed by roughly $77,000 in grant funding, is designed to remove the biggest barriers to electrification for vendors: high upfront battery costs and the logistical difficulty of finding places to charge.
PopWheels installed two black-and-yellow charging cabinets in the Flushing Meadows Corona Park area where the 10 vendors in the program can exchange depleted batteries for charged ones throughout the day. The service is currently free for vendors, funded by $46,000 from the City Parks Foundation and $30,900 from the nonprofit Resilient Cities Catalyst. The New York City Mayor’s Office of Climate and Environmental Justice and the Street Vendor Project are partners on the effort.
The company’s long-term business model would charge vendors a monthly subscription fee for access to the swapping infrastructure, plus a fee to buy or lease the inverter that houses the batteries inside the cart. PopWheels says it aims to make the setup price-competitive with buying and fueling a generator. The model builds on an existing PopWheels operation: the company already serves New York’s delivery workers, charging them between $65 and $95 per month to access e-bike batteries from more than 45 cabinets across the city. The batteries used for e-bikes are the same as those used in the food carts, meaning both groups could eventually share infrastructure. PopWheels has also begun paying some delivery workers to shuttle batteries to vendors located farther from the cabinets.
William Arevalo, one of the participating vendors, told Canary Media his batteries have worked well so far and that he would be willing to pay for a subscription. He currently spends roughly $500 to $600 per month on generator fuel, in addition to maintenance and repair costs. He said the generator’s noise makes it hard for customers and workers to hear each other, and voiced concern about the health effects of exhaust. “Little by little, there can be damage to the lungs,” he said. “I have a lot of friends who have this problem.” Arevalo’s cart — which fries empanadas and other dishes — now runs its electrical equipment on batteries, though the grill still uses propane, and his separate ice cream truck continues to rely on a diesel generator.
Why Battery Swapping Fits Street Vendors
Street vendors in New York and other cities worldwide commonly run on fossil-fueled generators that produce emissions linked to climate change and worker illness, and create constant noise. Batteries are a silent, emissions-free alternative, but two obstacles have slowed adoption: batteries cost more upfront than generators, and vendors need reliable, safe places to charge them. PopWheels’ swapping approach addresses both by letting vendors avoid purchasing batteries altogether and eliminating the need for overnight charging at home or at commissaries.
The economics are a central test of the model. “We understand that this only works if we meet not just our green needs but also the economic needs and the logistic needs of these vendors,” said Ben Rosenn, PopWheels’ director of deployments. “They’re not going to want to switch if it’s more expensive.” If the subscription model proves cheaper than the $500 to $600 per month in fuel and maintenance costs vendors like Arevalo report, it could offer a template for electrifying small mobile businesses without requiring capital they often lack. The fact that the same batteries and cabinets serve delivery workers also suggests a path to shared infrastructure across multiple user groups.
Prior Vending Electrification Efforts
PopWheels’ model is not the only route to electrifying food carts. Vendors can buy their own batteries and charge them at home or at the commissaries and depots where carts park overnight. Arevalo told Canary Media a friend with a Brooklyn food truck did exactly that after repeated noise and pollution complaints. But that path depends on access to adequate electrical infrastructure, which varies widely. “Every commissary really is different, and some of them have the capacity for there to be charging happening there,” said Isabelle Thomas, policy adviser for living streets and public spaces at the NYC Mayor’s Office of Climate and Environmental Justice. “But then there are others that would need electrical upgrades or don’t have enough outlets.”
The nonprofit Street Vendor Project, a partner on the Queens pilot, previously ran its own pilot a few years ago in which it provided vendors with batteries they had to charge themselves — an approach that exposed the logistical hurdles PopWheels is now trying to sidestep. The city’s familiarity with e-bike battery cabinets also lends the pilot institutional confidence. “We know that this technology is safe, and it has been used before,” Thomas said. “It’s just that it hasn’t necessarily been used in this way” for food vendors.
“We understand that this only works if we meet not just our green needs but also the economic needs and the logistic needs of these vendors. They’re not going to want to switch if it’s more expensive.”
— Ben Rosenn, PopWheels’ director of deployments
Limits of the Current Pilot
The pilot remains small — 10 vendors and two cabinets — and free to participants, so it has not yet tested whether vendors will actually pay the planned subscription and inverter fees at scale. The pricing of that subscription has not been finalized, according to the Canary Media report, and it is unclear whether it will beat generator costs for all types of vendors.
The technology also has defined limits. PopWheels’ batteries cannot power energy-intensive operations such as ice cream trucks; Arevalo’s own ice cream truck still runs on a diesel generator. Rosenn said such vendors would likely require a substantially different battery type and cabinet fleet. Cooking equipment is only partially covered in the current setup — Arevalo’s grill still runs on propane. The report also does not specify outcomes for vendors whose carts sit far from the cabinets, beyond the informal battery-shuttle arrangement with delivery workers.
What Happens When the Pilot Ends
The six-month pilot, launched in July, is expected to run into early next year, at which point PopWheels and its partners will need to determine whether to expand the program, adjust the model, or wind it down. Key open questions include the final subscription pricing, whether additional cabinets will be installed in Queens or other boroughs, and whether vendors will transition from free access to paid subscriptions. The city’s involvement through the Mayor’s Office of Climate and Environmental Justice suggests potential policy support, though no expansion commitments have been announced. PopWheels has also indicated that serving high-energy vendors like ice cream trucks would require different equipment, a step that has no announced timeline.
Key Questions
What is PopWheels’ battery-swapping model for food carts?
Vendors do not buy batteries. Instead, they exchange depleted batteries for charged ones at street-side charging cabinets installed near their vending spots, paying — under the planned business model — a monthly subscription plus a fee for the inverter that houses the batteries in the cart.
How much does the service cost vendors right now?
Nothing during the pilot. The 10 participating vendors access batteries for free thanks to $46,000 from the City Parks Foundation and $30,900 from Resilient Cities Catalyst. PopWheels eventually plans to charge a subscription, but final pricing has not been announced.
How does this compare to what vendors currently spend on generators?
One participating vendor, William Arevalo, said he spends roughly $500 to $600 per month on generator fuel, plus maintenance and repairs. He said he would be willing to pay for a battery subscription if it costs less, though the final subscription price has not been set.
Can the batteries power every type of food cart or truck?
No. PopWheels’ batteries suit carts like Arevalo’s empanada stand, but cannot power high-energy operations such as ice cream trucks, which would need a different battery type and cabinet fleet, according to the company. Grills in participating carts may still run on propane.
Is the technology proven?
The battery-swapping hardware is already used at scale by PopWheels for New York delivery workers, who pay $65 to $95 monthly to access e-bike batteries at more than 45 cabinets citywide. A city policy adviser said the technology is known to be safe, though it had not previously been applied to food vendors.
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