The New York City Fire Department has issued dozens of violations against seven PureGym locations for failing to meet the standard that the exit doors of its pods used to access the gym must remain operable without the use of an electronic device. 

PureGym installed new doors following the U.K.-based company's $121 million acquisition and renovation of the Blink Fitness chain, which filed for bankruptcy in 2024. Following renovations that affected dozens of former Blink facilities across New York and New Jersey, PureGym implemented a new floor plan and equipment, and 24/7 access, in most locations. But gymgoers encountered another step in their workout — the entry and exit pods that have left some frustrated. 

The new system has users download the PureGym app and scan a QR code in order to pass through cylindrical plexiglass doors and enter the gym. Once in the pod, the customer has no agency until the doors open on the other side. 

The FDNY confirmed to CBS News in an email that it visited seven PureGym locations across the city in December and January, and issued violations and summonses to four locations in Brooklyn, two in Queens and one in Manhattan. The FDNY said these gyms failed to produce a state-approved floor and seating plan and omitted new "scanning pods" that visitors face upon entry and exit from the original floor plans. The gyms also have inadequate exit signage, the FDNY said.

PureGym told CBS News that "[w]e note the violations from the FDNY and are working with them to quickly ensure all outstanding matters are addressed." It claimed its gyms in New York City have been designed and validated by a licensed architect and exits comply with the relevant fire code.

"At PureGym, the safety of our members is our primary responsibility," the company said in a statement. "All of our gyms in New York City have been designed and validated by our licensed architect and exits comply with the relevant fire code. The pods are not part of the fire exit protocol and in the event of a fire, or other evacuation, they would not be used."

"Every gym is equipped with a separate door which is clearly signed and compliant with the American Disabilities Act. It has push bar opening and this is how members would evacuate in the event of a fire," PureGym added. It said exiting through the ADA doors is always an available option if a member cannot leave through a pod for any reason.

However, violations listed by the FDNY at four of the seven locations say the gym failed to meet the standard that exit doors must remain operable without the use of an electronic device, such as a cellphone. The fire department noted that it's a violation for customers to need "special knowledge" such as the app or QR codes to exit.

"It makes me feel unsafe," said Nick Bohm, a 24-year-old who previously went to Blink Fitness several times a week to stay in shape. Over the summer, Bohm's regular gym sessions were interrupted due to the renovation. Bohm said he continued working out at the transformed PureGym for the convenience and low cost, but he has a different experience now. "The only benefit is the 24 hours, but the whole process is way more annoying," he told CBS News in a text message.

"You literally can't go to the gym without a phone," Bohm said. "They make it as inconvenient as possible."

Julia Martin, 24, has been going to the transformed PureGym in Manhattan's Murray Hill neighborhood for two years. "It is definitely hazardous for an emergency," she said of the entry and exit system.

"The pods are super slow... If there were an emergency in the gym, people would not be able to evacuate and a possibly minor emergency could become much worse," she told CBS News in a text message.

Martin also said she enjoys how the pods have made the gym stay open for longer hours. "It's nice that I can go whenever," she said, adding she misses the small interactions with front desk staff that fostered a sense of community. "The front desk staff was always super friendly and would say, 'Have a nice workout!' ... The pods almost make it feel more clinical."

PureGym debuted the entrance and exit pods in the U.K. before bringing them to its gyms in the U.S. The private equity firm KKR invested more than 300 million pounds into PureGym in 2021 and has been expanding the franchise worldwide with locations in Europe and Saudi Arabia, according to a news release.

More than half of the 56 PureGyms in New York and New Jersey are already equipped with pods, PureGym said in its statement to CBS News. "We will continue installing pods through Q1 2026 until every location provides 24/7 access to fitness, which continues to grow in demand."

Customer Gabby Kalomiris said she got stuck in one of the pods last month at the Bed-Stuy location. In a video now viewed nearly 1 million times on TikTok, she films herself stuck in the exit pod due to an apparent malfunction, knocking on the glass before another gymgoer scanned the code to let her out.  

"I knew this was gonna happen. I knew I was going to get stuck in this thing one day," she says in the video. "There was no one at that desk."