Manhattan looks to be a concrete paradise for electric car drivers, with data from the US Department of Energy telling us that EV chargers now outnumber traditional gas stations by a long way. New York's most densely populated borough has 320 charging stations and just 29 gas stations.

For EV-driving Manhattanites, this should come as a godsend - the trendy area is mostly comprised of high-rise apartment buildings, which makes charging a vehicle rather tricky. These public charging points may not be as convenient as a home charger, but it does introduce an element of practicality to the experience.

So, if you're zipping around New York in a new BMW i4, topping up your batteries should be remarkably easy. But what about regular ICE-powered vehicles? Well, those 29 gas stations should serve the needs of existing vehicles but don't expect more to pop up in the near future.

CEO of ChargePoint Holdings, Pasquale Roman, told Bloomberg that the growing popularity of EVs will kill off the remaining gas stations. "I don't think you need to go far up the electric-vehicle adoption curve to see gas-station deforestation...it's a question of when."

But is the electric car to blame for the downfall of New York's gas stations?

Not at all. New York's crippling property prices and land scarcity are the culprits. Gas stations have razor-thin profit margins, and wasting valuable land on a barely profitable business makes no sense. As such, they're being demolished to make way for more apartment blocks and offices.

But New Yorkers shouldn't worry too much. Overall, there are still more gas stations than EV chargers across New York's five boroughs. There are 697 gas stations dotted across the city, compared to 520 electric vehicle charging sites. Still, EV chargers are making swift progress. Unsurprisingly, the majority of Manhattan's public EV stations are in the wealthier parts (such as the Upper East Side).

Interestingly, most of the borough's gas stations are located north of Central Park, and there are very few EV chargers above 110th street. Most of these charging stations are found in parking garages and have a couple of chargers at each site.

These numbers are only set to grow in the coming years, especially as the government plans to deploy more chargers across the country. Like California, the State of New York has expressed intentions of becoming an emission-free state by 2035.

Nothing is set in stone yet, but Governor Kathy Hochul said "with sustained state and federal investments, our actions are incentivizing New Yorkers, local governments, and businesses to make the transition to electric vehicles."