By Nathalie Voit

The U.S. Postal Service (USPS) doubled its electric vehicle (EV) share of its future delivery fleet from 5,000 to 10,000+ vehicles, according to a press release published on March 24 from USPS.

The $2.98 billion order for 50,000 next-generation delivery trucks from Oshkosh Defense includes 10,019 battery electric vehicles (BEV), or approximately 20% of its future fleet.

“Since I came on board a year and a half ago, we have continuously evaluated and adjusted our vehicle purchase strategy based on our future network initiatives, ongoing review of BEV application to our operational strategy, and our financial outlook as we undertake our ongoing implementation of the Delivering for America plan,” Postmaster General and USPS CEO Louis DeJoy said in a statement. “Based upon this work and our improving outlook, we have determined that increasing our initial electric vehicle purchase from 5,000 to 10,019 makes good sense from an operational and financial perspective.”

DeJoy said most of the Postal Service’s 190,000 delivery vehicles are over 30 years old and severely outdated. She noted the current vehicles lack air conditioning, airbags, anti-lock brakes, backup cameras, and other standard safety features common in most modern vehicles.

“Today’s order demonstrates, as we have said all along, that the Postal Service is fully committed to the inclusion of electric vehicles as a significant part of our delivery fleet even though the investment will cost more than an internal combustion engine vehicle,” she added. DeJoy said USPS will continue to look for ways to accelerate its EV strategy while keeping in mind organizational and financial constraints. 

“Replacing our aged fleet is a critical part of the organizational transformation of the Postal Service. But it is by no means the only critical part,” said Executive Director of the Postal Service’s Next Generation Delivery Vehicle (NGDV) program Victoria K. Stephen in a statement before the House Committee of Oversight and Reform on April 5.

USPS said that the next-generation delivery vehicles are set to be rolled out in late 2023.