Sen. Tom Carper Says USPS Should Buy More Electric Vehicles

A USPS truck sits at a facility in Elkridge, Md., in August 2020. (Stefani Reynolds/Bloomberg News)
A USPS truck sits at a facility in Elkridge, Md., in August 2020. (Stefani Reynolds/Bloomberg News)

[Ensure you have all the info you need in these unprecedented times. Subscribe now.]

The U.S. Postal Service should include more electric vehicles in its new fleet than it first envisioned when it awarded a $6 billion contract to Oshkosh Corp., a U.S. senator told nominees to the service’s board.

“The Postal Service has a great opportunity here to take the lead in combating climate change, and that’s by moving away from internal combustion engines,” Sen.Tom Carper (D-Del.), told three nominees to the agency’s board.

Carper spoke as the Homeland Security & Governmental Affairs Committee considered three nominees from President Joe Biden. Their arrival at the postal board would end a Republican majority there. No vote was taken April 22.



RELATED: DeJoy Embraces Electric Trucks Despite USPS Contract Award

The Postal Service in February awarded the contract for tens of thousands of mail-delivery vans to commercial and military truck maker Oshkosh, and said it expected 10% of the fleet to be powered by electricity. The award bypassed fledgling electric-vehicle specialist Workhorse Group Inc. after Biden ordered a clean-energy fleet.

Postmaster General Louis DeJoy later said as many as 50% of vehicles might be electric when the first full set of vehicles is ordered. Oshkosh has said its vehicle can be built to use either electric power or a gasoline engine.

Want more news? Listen to today's daily briefing below or go here for more info: