Synopsis:

It's the year 2020. You're navigating the world-class city of Tshwane in your electric car. You get a subtle notification from the heads-up display projected onto your windshield letting you know that you will soon need to recharge your vehicle's power cells. The on-board computer automatically triggers the car's GPS, which locates the most convenient charging station. 

This happens to be a RE_charge station. Because of GPS navigation, imposing branding is unnecessary. The RE_charge station is easily recognized by it's raw materiality and it's symbiosis with nature, although it subtly blends into the urban landscape. 

The approach is intuitive without being overly simplistic. There is a clear vehicular movement route which bisects the station. No signage is required. You park your vehicle in the appropriate area. After exiting your vehicle you bump your cellphone/mobile device against the waist-high nodule which, via NFC, automatically recognizes your user profile. Your vehicle disappears into the subterranean charging bay where vehicular diagnostics will be carried out, the car will be washed, and ultimately, recharged. 

You are greeted with two equally appealing options for personal rejuvenation while you wait for your vehicle to be recharged. 

External stimulation or Internal stimulation. 

External stimulation would be a traditional spa environment where you would have the opportunity to experience the replenishing effects of physical therapy in a tranquil and relaxing environment. 
Alternatively, internal stimulation would be a contemporary reinterpretation of a "health cafe". In this cafe, you would be able to enjoy a variety of healthy refreshing beverages, the ingredients of which would be products of the urban agriculture found in the surrounding informal settlements. The beverage is mechanically prepared in front of you; the entire process a transparent one. You now choose from one of a few comfortable seats to sit and enjoy your chosen beverage. 

You place your mobile device on the table. Again, via NFC, your beverage is automatically paid for. Your mobile device is also conveniently being wirelessly recharged via a technology called "induction charging". 

While enjoying your beverage you are surrounded by aspects of nature unavailable elsewhere in the typical urban fabric. You see various forms of indigenous flora. You hear the sound of running water. Your olfactory senses are greeted with an absence of toxic pollution. The noise of traffic is no longer pertinent, because of the dominance of the electric vehicle. You are tasting organically grown fresh produce. The materials you touch are completely raw and honest, a reference to the textures found in nature. 

Your vehicle's diagnostics report appears on your device, if necessary, offering you the option to schedule a service at your respective manufacturer's nearest service depot. You are then notified that your vehicle is ready to be collected. 

Once you've finished your beverage you take one last look around at this miniature oasis in the city. 
You head back to where you left your vehicle.

 

Moments after you touch your mobile device to the nodule your vehicle is returned, ready for you to complete your journey through this exciting urban landscape knowing that by simply stopping at this recharge node you have done your part as an advocate of sustainability. 

One pit stop at a time RE_charge stations will contribute to the propagation of the responsible use of resources and, by extension, a better world for generations that supersede our own.