Future of USPS trucks is electric: Deal struck to replace, expand 230K-vehicle fleet
The U.S. Postal Service will finally get new high-tech mail delivery trucks.
The agency said Tuesday that it awarded a 10-year, multibillion-dollar contract to Wisconsin-based Oshkosh Defense to replace its aging fleet of vehicles.
The contract will replace and expand the existing fleet of more than 230,000 vehicles – among them approximately 190,000 delivery trucks – including many that have been in service for 30 years.
The deal calls for the postal service to order between 50,000 to 165,000 new delivery trucks featuring 360-degree cameras, advanced braking, with front- and rear-collision avoidance system that includes visual, audio warning and automatic braking.
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The vehicles will also be a combination of battery-electric and internal combustion-powered that will be retrofitted to meet the latest advances in electric vehicle technology.
The deal includes an initial $482 million investment from USPS to Oshkosh to finalize the design, testing and required tooling of Next Generation Delivery Vehicles (NGDV). The first installment will also help create a new assembly plant to build the trucks, the postal service said.
The announcement comes at a time when the USPS is in heavy competition with the likes of FedEx, UPS and Amazon for package deliveries.
"Our fleet modernization also reflects the Postal Service’s commitment to a more environmentally sustainable mix of vehicles," said USPS Postmaster General Louis DeJoy in a news release. "Because we operate one of the largest civilian government fleets in the world, we are committed to pursuing near-term and long-term opportunities to reduce our impact on the environment."
The high-tech delivery trucks could begin appearing on mail routes as soon as 2023.
