New USPS van

[fdcg27]

Mail trucks are used in a wide variety of situations and conditions. A one size fits all EV solution isn't going to be the best in every case. Battery performance in extreme cold weather, limited electrical power availability in aging postal facilities, long routes in suburban areas, etc are all reasons to prefer a traditional powertrain.

I suspect that 300 miles of normal use range would suit any route under any weather conditions.

 

[Tempest1]

I believe these are a make work project for a defense contractor:

https://oshkoshdefense.com/vehicles/delivery-vehicles/

And they are vastly behind delivery schedule:

https://www.independent.org/article/2025/12/18/billions-usps-electric-vehicle/

 

[AZjeff]

I am also a little dismayed that they didn't go with an EV for the way these things are used.

Every post office that would get EVs would need chargers installed. How many? 1 charger for each EV? 1 charger for every 2 EVs? $$$$$$$$

Why not hybrids?

 

[fdcg27]

Every post office that would get EVs would need chargers installed. How many? 1 charger for each EV? 1 charger for every 2 EVs? $$$$$$$$

Why not hybrids?

Well, EV owners somehow manage to afford the rather minimal costs of a one-time 240VAV outlet install.
Pretty sure USPS could as well for whatever number of trucks each PO actually has. The cost would be in the noise level as compared to the cost of buying and running a fleet of bespoke ICE vehicles.

 

[ripcord]

I suspect that 300 miles of normal use range would suit any route under any weather conditions.

I'm pretty sure mail delivery is not normal use.

Well, EV owners somehow manage to afford the rather minimal costs of a one-time 240VAV outlet install.
Pretty sure USPS could as well for whatever number of trucks each PO actually has. The cost would be in the noise level as compared to the cost of buying and running a fleet of bespoke ICE vehicles.

Most postal facilities will typically have about 4kW of mains service installed. This is grossly under powered for charging a large number of EVs. How many thousands of facilities will need major electrical upgrades to support an EV fleet? How many billions of dollars would that cost over and above what has been allocated for the program?

 

[fdcg27]

I'm pretty sure mail delivery is not normal use.

Most postal facilities will typically have about 4kW of mains service installed. This is grossly under powered for charging a large number of EVs. How many thousands of facilities will need major electrical upgrades to support an EV fleet? How many billions of dollars would that cost over and above what has been allocated for the program?

No, mail delivery is low speed stop/start use, so a duty cycle even better suited to an EV.
The cost of the electrical upgrades would be dwarfed by the net present value of the costs associated with a fleet of already obsolete ICE vehicles.

 

[ripcord]

No, mail delivery is low speed stop/start use, so a duty cycle even better suited to an EV.
The cost of the electrical upgrades would be dwarfed by the net present value of the costs associated with a fleet of already obsolete ICE vehicles.

Yeah, I'm pretty sure the USPS has already crunched those numbers, hence the reason a majority of those new vehicles will be (non-obsolete) ICE powered.

One thing I'd be really interested to know about is how modular these rigs are in terms of power plant. Can those ICE trucks be converted to EV and back as technology improves or the USPS gradually upgrades their facilities?

One thing to keep in mind is that those trucks are operated in a near constant state of acceleration and use much more fuel (energy) than you would expect. From what I've read, those ULV trucks use 2 to 3x the amount of gas during normal operation than a similarly equipped passenger car with similar technology would. Regenerative braking would help but it's no where near 100% efficient. Closer to 60%.

 

[fdcg27]

Yeah, I'm pretty sure the USPS has already crunched those numbers, hence the reason a majority of those new vehicles will be (non-obsolete) ICE powered.

You have a lot more confidence in the analytical abilities of USPS than I do.
You also may be underestimating the political aspects of their choices.