The US Postal service announced on February 28 that it awarded America’s second-leading automaker with a purchase contract of 9,250 off-the-shelf Ford E-Transits. Per the press release, Ford will start delivering the EVs by the end of 2023.
Notably, the move is crucial to the agency’s electrification efforts in its delivery fleet.
“We are moving forward with our plans to simultaneously improve our service, reduce our cost, grow our revenue, and improve the working environment for our employees. Electrification of our vehicle fleet is now an important component of these initiatives.”
Postmaster General Louis DeJoy
USPS’ electrification strategy
Proposed electrification mix
The US Postal service aims to electrify its more than 30 years old fleet of Grumman LLVs as part of its broader effort to deploy about 66,000 EVs by 2028.
Per the report, it took several years to complete the bidding. It is also worth noting that the contract was initially awarded to defense contractor Oshkosh with a meager 10% EV purchase goal. Meanwhile, the remaining 90% would be gas-guzzling trucks with mpg ratings as low as 8.6, comparable to the first-gen Grumman LLVs.
However, Congress raised concerns about the decision, prompting lawsuits from other organizations. This pressure eventually led USPS to progressively raise the proposed electrification percentage.
Fortunately, USPS secured a $3 billion fund for its electrification effort under the Inflation Reduction Act. Now, the target calls for purchasing 75% electric trucks from now until December 2022 and 100% by 2026.
Off-the-shelf delivery vehicles purchase
After that, further issues arose regarding the vehicles the agency would purchase. Many suggested that the USPS buy off-the-shelf delivery vehicles after accepting Oshkosh’s bid. This move would allow the agency to avoid relying on one automaker and buy EVs already being produced.
That said, the agency decided to buy 21,000 “commercial off-the-shelf” EVs to effectively boost its electrification strategy. Of that total, the 9,250 units were won by Ford, which now commits to start delivering the E-Transits by the year’s end.
Apart from the planned EV purchase, the USPS also aims to acquire 14,000 EV charging stations for its future e-trucks.
For context, the USPS has the largest fleet in the federal government, with around 225,000 units. In retrospect, President Biden pledged to convert these vehicles to electrics just a few days into his presidency.
“We have developed a strategy that mitigates both cost and risk of deployment – which enable execution on this initiative to begin now. I again want to thank the Administration officials and members of Congress who have assisted us in this initiative. Each has shown genuine understanding that our movement toward electrification must be thoughtful and deliberate, must appropriately manage risk, and must be consistent with our primary delivery mission for the American people.”
Postmaster General Louis DeJoy
