The federal government’s largest vehicle fleet, that of the United States Postal Service (USPS), is getting a makeover. On Tuesday, Postmaster General Louis DeJoy announced a new plan that calls for significant investment in electric vehicles for the fleet.
The plan states that by 2028, 45,000 of the new 60,000 Next Generation Delivery Vehicles (NGDV) the USPS purchases will be electric. Additionally, 21,000 new commercial off-the-shelf electric vehicles will be added to the fleet, for a total of 66,000 EVs. Furthermore, the plan calls for all new USPS vehicles purchased after 2026 to be electric.
Until now, the USPS has been hesitant to make such a significant commitment to converting to EVs. The $9.6 billion price tag of this new plan could have been part of it. Thanks to the Inflation Reduction Act, however, that cost has gone down, with $3 billion coming to the USPS to help it electrify its fleet. “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,” DeJoy said of the funding.
