BY GRANT LANCASTER
A company known for its electric rideshare scooters is extending free rides to healthcare workers in New York to help these people get to work easily and safely.
Revel plans to open a service area in Manhattan to augment the programs it launched last week in Brooklyn and Queens, where hundreds of healthcare workers have taken the offer of free electric transport, according to a Thursday press release.
The scooter service in Manhattan would cover several major hospitals including Mount Sinai Medical Center, Lenox Hill Hospital, NewYork-Presbyterian/Columbia University Irving Medical Center, NewYork-Presbyterian/Weill Cornell Medical Center and others.
Healthcare workers can upload a photo of their employee ID card to Revel’s website to receive free rides from the scooter-sharing service.
“We encourage everyone who is not an essential worker to stay at home, but we are here to support those that are desperately needed at work,” said Frank Reig, CEO and co-founder of Revel.
New York City Council Member Kieth Powers thinks the rideshare scooters present an attractive alternative to public transit, he said.
“Our healthcare workers are willfully on the front lines during this pandemic, yet many don’t have a safe way to get to and from work given avoidance of public transit,” Powers said. “Revels allow for riders to commute alone and maintain a safe distance apart.”
The scooters and helmets are regularly cleaned with COVID-19-effective disinfectant to prevent the spread of illness through the shared vehicles, according to the press release.
