Hardware

US Postal Service intros EV charging stations

Image: Adobe Stock

January 23, 2024

The United States Postal Service introduced its first set of electric vehicle charging stations at its South Atlanta Sorting and Delivery Center, according to a press release. Charging stations like these will be installed at hundreds of new S&DCs across the country throughout the year and will power what will be the nation's largest EV fleet.

USPS also showcased new battery-powered and domestically manufactured commercial off-the-shelf delivery vehicles that will make up a portion of the Postal Service's EV fleet. Deployment of electric delivery trucks will start in Georgia and then expand to other locations across the country throughout the year.

The vehicles feature air conditioning and advanced safety technology and are designed to meet modern operational requirements.

As part of its 10-year Delivering for America plan, the Postal Service expects to convert approximately 400 selected sites into S&DCs nationwide. These centers will serve as the local hubs to deploy EVs along local carrier routes. As of January 2024, the Postal Service has opened 29 S&DCs nationwide.

The charging stations displayed at the Atlanta S&DC were manufactured by Siemens. The stations will be able to charge Postal Service EVs overnight prior to the next day's deliveries. The Postal Service's first 14,000 EV chargers will be manufactured by three suppliers: Siemens, Rexel/ChargePoint and Blink.

USPS plans on procuring a total of 21,000 COTS EVs — including 9,250 from Ford — depending on market availability and operational feasibility.