US Postal Service To Buy More Than 66K Electric Vehicles By 2028
The United States Postal Service said it plans to buy at least 66,000 battery electric delivery vehicles by 2028. The decision is part of its 106,000 vehicle acquisition plan for deliveries between now and 2028. Total investment for the plan is expected to reach $9.6 billion including $3 billion from Inflation Reduction Act funds.
The agency tweeted, “USPS Intends to deploy more than 66,000 electric vehicles by 2028, making it one of the largest electric vehicle fleets in the nation.”
The Postal Service said the acquisitions delivered in 2026 through 2028 are expected to be 100% electric, and that it will continue to explore feasibility of achieving 100% electrification for the overall Postal Service delivery vehicle fleet.
The new vehicles will start to replace the Postal Service’s aging delivery fleet of over 220,000 vehicles.
In the new plan, the Postal Service, which is implementing a 10-year transformation move, anticipates at least 60,000 Next Generation Delivery Vehicles or NGDV, of which at least 75%, i.e., around 45,000, will be battery electric. A total of 21,000 additional commercial off-the-shelf or COTS vehicles would also be battery electric, depending on market availability and operational feasibility.
The Postal Service also anticipates including internal combustion vehicles necessary to meet immediate vehicle replacement needs.
The latest initiatives come under the Postal Service’s overall network modernization efforts which allows for a more rapid deployment of EVs. In addition, the agency is getting $3 billion in congressional funding appropriated under the Inflation Reduction Act or IRA.
It is expected that postal network modernization efforts will also drive additional substantial carbon reductions through logistics improvements and reduced transportation.
Postmaster General Louis DeJoy said, “While most of the electric vehicle funding will continue to come from Postal Service revenues, we are grateful for the confidence that Congress and the Administration have placed in us to build and acquire what has the potential to become the largest electric vehicle fleet in the nation.”
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