Washington CNN —
The US Postal Service on Tuesday announced its intention to deploy at least 66,000 electric delivery trucks by 2028, a key goal of the Biden administration’s climate agenda.
The shift to electric vehicles, following pressure from environmental groups and a funding boost from the Anti-Inflation Act, will result in the agency buying at least 60,000 “next-generation delivery vehicles,” at least 45,000 of which will be electric.
By 2026, the US Post Office wants to procure almost exclusively zero-emission delivery vans.
The investment is expected to total $9.6 billion, including $3 billion in funds from Inflation Reduction Act funds, the agency said in a statement. The electric vehicle fleet will be among the largest in the country.
The announcement marks a significant shift from the Postal Service’s original plans, originally confirmed in February, to replace the vast majority of its aging vehicle fleet with gas-powered trucks. Postmaster General Louis DeJoy said at the time that USPS needed to balance its commitment to an electric fleet with “our poor financial situation.”
But after criticism from the White House, the Environmental Protection Agency and US lawmakers, the agency announced this summer that at least 40% of its new delivery vehicles will be electric.
DeJoy credited funding from the Inflation Reduction Act on Tuesday to help the agency revise its plans again and transition to a majority-electric delivery fleet.
“The $3 billion provided by Congress has significantly reduced the risk associated with accelerating the implementation of a nationwide infrastructure needed to electrify our delivery fleet,” DeJoy said in a statement.
“Although most of the funding for electric vehicles will continue to come from Postal Service revenue, 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 to become the largest electric vehicle fleet in the country,” he added.
Oshkosh Defense Postal Service’s new electric vehicle includes many safety features not found in many of its current vehicles, including airbags. It will have more cargo space, which will come in handy as the postal service delivers more packages. The roof of the vehicle is so high that a postman can stand in the back.
“Moving packages from point A to point B in a cleaner, more cost-effective way and accelerating towards a future of electric vehicles stamped ‘Made in America,'” the president’s national climate adviser, Ali Zaidi, said in a statement.
“This is the Biden climate strategy on wheels and the US Postal Service delivering for the American people.”