July 13th, 2009

From Green Right Now Reports

The U.S. Postal Service announced it will replace 6,500 vehicles with 1,000 E-85 ethanol-capable and 900 gasoline/electric hybrid vehicles to its delivery fleet. The rest of the new fleet purchase will be fuel-efficient, four-cylinder vehicles, which will replace aging vehicles at postal offices and facilities across the country as the Postal Service continues to reduce the size of its fleet..

At nearly 220,000, the Postal Service operates and maintains the largest civilian fleet in the country. The 1,900 vehicles, paid for by the U.S. General Services Administration, will bring the total number of alternate fuel-capable vehicles in the Postal Service fleet to more than 43,000.

“With our fleet traveling more than 1.2 billion miles a year, the Postal Service consistently looks for ways to reduce the environmental footprint that results from visiting every home and business in America six days a week,” Sam Pulcrano, vice president of Sustainability, said in a statement. “The GSA fleet upgrade program will help us continue these strategies.”

The Postal Service has increased alternative fuel use by 41 percent since 2006, and plans to reduce petroleum use by 20 percent over the next five years. Replacing aging vehicles with more fuel-efficient and alternative fuel-capable vehicles is key to reaching that goal.