America's mail trucks of the future will definitely be a departure from the current models.
The U.S. Postal Service on Tuesday announced a multi-year, multi-billion-dollar contract with Wisconsin-based Oshkosh Defense to build "a new generation of U.S.-built postal delivery vehicles that will drive the most dramatic modernization of the USPS fleet in three decades."
The USPS said Tuesday the Next Generation Delivery Vehicles are estimated to appear on carrier routes beginning in 2023.U.S. Postal Service
Oshkosh Defense is projected to produce anywhere between 50,000 to 165,000 of the vehicles over the next decade, equipped with either fuel-efficient internal combustion engines or battery-powered electric powertrains.
"Our fleet modernization also reflects the Postal Service's commitment to a more environmentally sustainable mix of vehicles," Postmaster General and USPS CEO Louis DeJoy said.
Many of the agency's 190,000 existing vehicles have been in service for 30 years.
According to a Vice story released last July, "hundreds" of the old guard vehicles have caught fire in recent years, an issue that's cropped up due to the aging fleet and the much-publicized USPS budget crisis.
Tuesday's unveiling is part of soon-to-be-released, 10-year plan "to transform USPS into the preferred delivery service provider for the American public."
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