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GAO recommends that USPS plan for potential workplace charging

The US Postsl Service (USPS) is embarking on a massive electrification of its fleet. In March, the USPS awarded a contract for 9,250 Ford E-Transit battery electric vehicles (BEVs) as well as initial orders for more than 14,000 charging stations to be deployed at Postal Service facilities. (Earlier post.)

Overall, the Postal Service’s total investment in vehicles is expected to reach $9.6 billion, including $3 billion from Inflation Reduction Act (IRA) funds. The December 2022 plan announced intended acquisitions over the next five years of a 75% electric fleet of Next Generation Delivery Vehicles (NGDV). Acquisitions of NGDV after 2026 will be 100% electric.

The USPS also awarded Blink Charging a contract for up to 41,500 EV charging units to support EV charging infrastructure for the USPS as part of its vehicle electrification strategy. (Earlier post.)

In the larger context, the US federal government plans to invest billions in public chargers. Given the number and location of USPS facilities, some stakeholders and policymakers have suggested that public chargers at postal facilities could help advance these efforts.

The Government Accountability Office (GAO) was asked to determine the feasibility of using USPS facilities to host public chargers. GAO has now issued a report that, among other things:

  1. describes the groups that might use these chargers;

  2. describes the potential benefits and challenges to USPS of hosting chargers; and

  3. examines the extent to which USPS has considered options for workplace charging at its facilities as it moves to electrify some of its delivery fleet.

IMG_0136

Illustration of a hypothetical USPS facility prepared for electric vehicle chargers to serve postal delivery vehicles and potential additional users in the future. GAO

Overall, GAO recommended that the Postmaster General ensure appropriate USPS leaders incorporate the potential for workplace charging into planning efforts to deploy fleet-charging infrastructure. GAO believes considering the potential for such charging would be beneficial. USPS partially agreed.

Although offering workplace charging—i.e., for postal employees—was seen as beneficial, offering public charging at USPS facilities was not.

However, hosting chargers for the general public would pose significant challenges and provide relatively few benefits to USPS, according to USPS officials and stakeholders whom GAO interviewed. For example, USPS officials said hosting public chargers could be at odds with USPS’s goal of moving customers in and out of a facility quickly. Moreover, USPS is generally prohibited from offering nonpostal services, and officials said addressing challenges could require significant resources. In light of these and other challenges, USPS has not pursued chargers for the general public. Stakeholders GAO interviewed also recognized these challenges, but a few noted potential benefits for USPS, including improving USPS’s reputation on environmental issues and enhancing its relevance.

—GAO report

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