The US Postal Service has placed its initial Next Generation Delivery Vehicle (NGDV) delivery order with Oshkosh Defense at a cost of $2.98 billion. The first order is for 50,000 vehicles—a minimum of which will be for 10,019 battery electric vehicles (BEVs)—approximately a doubling of the earlier targeted EV cohort.

We are pleased to be moving forward with this much needed investment in our 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. 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.

Many of our 190,000 delivery vehicles on the road are more than 30 years old and lack basic safety features which are standard in most vehicles today. The safety of the men and women of the Postal Service is our number one priority, and they have waited long enough for the NGDV. We owe it to our carriers and the communities we serve to provide safer, more efficient vehicles to fulfill our universal service obligation to deliver to 161 million addresses in all climates and topographies six days per-week.

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. That said, as we have also stated repeatedly, we must make fiscally prudent decisions in the needed introduction of a new vehicle fleet. We will continue to look for opportunities to increase the electrification of our delivery fleet in a responsible manner, consistent with our operating strategy, the deployment of appropriate infrastructure, and our financial condition, which we expect to continue to improve as we pursue our plan.

—Postmaster General and USPS CEO Louis DeJoy

The 10-year contract with Oshkosh Defense for the NGDV, originally awarded in February 2021 (earlier post), was stalled over pushback from the Biden Administration, spearheaded by the US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), that the deal was flawed and was not nearly aggressive enough in terms of electrification.

The USPS completed its environmental review of the NGDV program in February. The Postal Service communicated its completion of the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) process in a record of decision (ROD) filed with the Federal Register. The ROD details USPS’ response to the EPA feedback. The Postal Service’s assessment is detailed in a 340-page Final Environmental Impact Statement (FEIS), which was published under the NEPA process on 7 January 2022.

While the current NGDV plan calls for its fleet mix to be at least 10% BEV, the Postal Service in its ROD recognized a 100% mix of BEVs would deliver even greater emission benefits, and notesd the program is designed to increase the mix of BEVs as financial resources become available.

Unlike the current Long Life Delivery Vehicles (LLV) the NGDV will feature air conditioning, improved ergonomics, and more advanced vehicle and safety technology—including 360-degree cameras, advanced braking and traction control, air bags, a front-and rear-collision avoidance system that includes visual, audio warning, and automatic braking. The vehicles will also have increased cargo capacity to maximize efficiency and better accommodate higher mail and package volumes.

It is expected the NGDVs will begin appearing on carrier routes in late 2023.

The Postal Service generally receives no tax dollars for operating expenses and relies on the sale of postage, products and services to fund its operations.