Dear NRDC Activist,

The United States Postal Service (USPS) touches the lives of millions of people in America every day, traveling far and wide to deliver our mail and serve rural, suburban, and urban communities alike.

USPS also happens to operate THE largest fleet of government vehicles in the country, with nearly 250,000 trucks in service — most of which are aging, antiquated, polluting gas-guzzlers.

Right now, USPS is planning to purchase a new fleet of up to 165,000 delivery trucks. And it has an opportunity to make a big impact in the fight against climate change and air pollution while cutting costs by transitioning more of its fleet to clean, money-saving electric vehicles (EVs).

Unfortunately, its current plan is weak. USPS is planning to purchase tens of thousands of conventional gas-burning trucks, but only a few thousand EVs. We can't let this happen.

Thankfully, USPS is inviting the public to comment on this important decision — but only until October 18.

Can we count on you to submit an urgent public comment calling on the USPS to transition to 100% EVs and do its part to combat the climate crisis? This is urgent: The comment deadline is on Monday.

With the climate crisis raging, the USPS needs to invest in proven EV technologies that will save money in the long run, reduce air pollution, and be part of the climate change solution.

The current fleet of USPS vehicles travels more than 1.3 billion miles and uses the equivalent of over 180 million gallons of gas per year. Over half of these vehicles are decades old and some average only 10 MPG. Switching to electric could allow USPS vehicles to get the equivalent of over 100 MPG.

Maintaining these aging fossil fuel vehicles comes at an enormous environmental and financial cost, as USPS spends $2 billion on delivery vehicle maintenance and nearly $500 million on fuel per year.

Furthermore, clean EVs will protect the health of USPS employees and the communities they drive through by reducing their exposure to harmful vehicle emissions, which contribute to the formation of smog and can worsen respiratory conditions like asthma or COVID-19.

The USPS has committed to purchasing just 10% of its new fleet as EVs. This is unacceptable. With vehicle makers rolling out new electric models every day, and the costs of these vehicles falling by the month, now is the time to invest in the vehicles of the future, not the clunky technology of the 1950s. And, given rising gas prices, EVs will also save the Postal Service billions in fuel costs in the future.

Now it's up to us to escalate pressure on USPS to follow through and put 100% EVs on the roads.

Act now: Tell the USPS that it MUST commit to a 100% EV fleet and do its part to stop climate change before it's too late.

We simply cannot afford to allow USPS to lock in another 25 years of reliance on fossil fuel delivery vehicles — to do so would be short-sighted and fiscally disastrous for the already struggling agency, which has lost $69 billion over the last 11 years.

So please submit a public comment before Monday's urgent deadline urging USPS to commit to transitioning to 100% EVs.

Thanks for continuing to stand with us.

Sincerely,

Marc Boom
Director of Federal Affairs, NRDC

Photo: Paul Sableman via Flickr, CC BY 4.0