USPS invests $2.98 billion in Next Generation Delivery Vehicles

The United States Parcel Service—the country’s postal agency—has invested $2.98 billion in Next Generation Delivery Vehicles (NGDVs), manufactured by Oshkosh Corporation.

The initial order is for 50,000 vehicles, 10,019 of which will be battery electric vehicles (BEVs).

NGDVs are mail trucks that are designed to be safer than their predecessors, as well as carrying increased cargo capacity.

Our Next Generation Delivery Vehicles are on display at CES. We’re bringing more convenience to our carriers on a daily basis. See how we’ll be Delivering for America: https://t.co/RuVeyqQgMW

— U.S. Postal Service (@USPS) January 7, 2022

According to USPS, many of the vehicles the agency currently has on the roads are more than 30 years old.

A number of new features are listed for the NGDVs, some of which are basic features that would be expected of any modern vehicles, including air conditioning, air bags, automatic braking, collision avoidance systems with audio and visual warnings, advanced braking and traction control, and 360-degree cameras.

With a distinctively boxy, duck-billed appearance, their design minimises danger as well as maximising inside capacity, by making collisions less injurious and removing front blind spots for drivers.

USPS expects them to start appearing on carrier routes in 2023.

Source: USPS, Curbed

Header image: Sam LaRussa