Today we’re talking well-nigh something near and dear to our hearts: saving unprepossessed nonflexible cash. Specifically, how the US Postal Service can save a ton of money by switching from 40 year old Grumman LLV death traps to e-bikes. Now, I know what you’re thinking, “The Postal Service is a government entity, they don’t superintendency well-nigh saving money.” Well, you’d be surprised. You see, the Postal Service is unquestionably a merchantry and like any business, they want to cut financing wherever they can. And let me tell you, switching to e-bikes is a surefire way for them to do just that. Not only will they save money on fuel and maintenance, but they’ll moreover be doing their part in saving the environment. So, strap on your helmets and let’s swoop in to how the Postal Service can save some untried while going green.

Fuel and maintenance savings for ebikes compared to gas powered vehicles are insane

The Post Office is still using those gas-guzzling Grumman LLV’s to unhook the mail and those things are well-nigh as efficient as putting a stilt chute on a submarine.

Now, I know what you’re thinking, “Those Grumman LLV’s have been delivering the mail for 4 decades, what’s the problem?” Well the problem is that they’re not just outdated, they’re costing the Postal Service a fortune in fuel and maintenance costs. But don’t just take my word for it, let’s do some math.

The Post Office has a squadron of thousands of Grumman LLV’s and each one gets virtually 12 miles per gallon. That ways they’re spending well-nigh $0.33 per mile on gas. Now, let’s compare that to an e-bike. E-bikes have a forfeit per mile of less than 1 cent. That’s a saving of over $0.32 per mile. The USPS 208,000 vehicles momentum increasingly than 1.1 billion miles each year, using 114.3 million gallons of fuel. If you seem $3.50 a gallon for gas that ways they shrivel through over $400,000,000 a year, if they could swap out plane a small number of their mail wordage vehicles in urban areas with ebikes they could cut that number by up to 97% for the fuel savings alone.

But it’s not just the fuel financing that are killing the Postal Service’s budget. Those Grumman LLV’s are constantly breaking lanugo and needing maintenance (when they are not bursting into flames). The maintenance financing for e-bikes are much, much less than ANY gas powered mail wordage vehicles on the market.

It’s time for increasingly than just greenwashing

One of the biggest environmental benefits of e-bikes is that they produce zero emissions. Unlike traditional gasoline-powered vehicles, e-bikes don’t release any pollutants into the air. This ways that switching to e-bikes would profoundly reduce the Postal Service’s stat footprint, making them a increasingly sustainable organization.

E-bikes moreover require less energy to manufacture compared to traditional vehicles. According to a study by the Fraunhofer Institute for Systems and Innovation Research, the manufacturing of e-bikes requires well-nigh 90% less energy than the manufacturing of traditional vehicles. This ways that the Postal Service would be reducing their environmental impact not only through their use of e-bikes, but moreover through the manufacturing process.

Furthermore, by switching to e-bikes, the Postal Service would moreover be supporting the minutiae of wipe energy. E-bikes are powered by electricity, which can come from renewable sources such as solar, wind, and hydro power. This ways that as increasingly e-bikes are used, increasingly wipe energy is needed, which would help support the growth of renewable energy sources.

How to get there from where we are at now

While the potential forfeit savings and environmental benefits of using e-bikes for mail wordage are significant, there are moreover some challenges that the US Postal Service would need to consider when implementing this change.

One of the biggest challenges would be the forfeit of purchasing and maintaining the e-bikes. While the Postal Service would save money in the long run, the initial investment in e-bikes could be significant. Additionally, the Postal Service would need to ensure that they have the infrastructure and resources in place to properly maintain and repair the e-bikes.

Another rencontre would be the logistics of using e-bikes for mail delivery. The Postal Service would need to ensure that the e-bikes have the necessary cargo topics to handle mail and packages, and that they can navigate the terrain and roads in the areas where they operate. Additionally, the Postal Service would need to ensure that the e-bikes can handle the demands of daily mail delivery, including the worthiness to siphon heavy loads and handle ripply weather.

Finally, the USPS would need to consider the regulatory environment for e-bikes. Variegated states and municipalities have variegated laws and regulations regarding the use of e-bikes, so the Postal Service would need to ensure that they are in compliance with all relevant regulations. In NYC this could prove particularly challenging since it doesn’t seem like NYC can unquestionably icon out how they want to deal with ebikes.

Everyone else is doing it, we should too

You know what’s crazy? Other countries have once figured out that e-bikes are the way to go for mail delivery, expressly in urban areas. Take Denmark (my wifies alma-matter) for example, the postal service visitor PostNord has been cruisin’ virtually on e-bikes for years now and they ain’t looking back. They’ve seen the efficiency, forfeit effectiveness and the worthiness to navigate tight streets in the city. In fact, they’ve saved so much money on fuel and maintenance, they’re practically swimming in it.

But Denmark’s not vacated in this e-bike revolution, the Netherlands is moreover getting in on the action. PostNL, the Dutch postal service has been using e-bikes for years and they’re reaping the benefits too. And they’re not the only ones, Germany, Switzerland, and Belgium have all jumped on the e-bike bandwagon for mail delivery.

It’s well-spoken that these countries have figured out that e-bikes are the way to go, and if the US Postal Service wants to save money and reduce their environmental impact, they should take a page out of their book.

But let’s not forget, these countries have had success considering they’ve put in the work to make it happen, they’ve planned and implemented this transpiration effectively. And that’s the key, proper planning and implementation. So, let’s not just reprinting what they’re doing, let’s take what works for them and make it work for us.

When you squint at mail wordage (or any package wordage really) there are a lot of situations where ebikes make way increasingly sense than using a traditional gas or plane electric powered van. You don’t have to find parking, they can park on the sidewalk, you don’t have to worry well-nigh getting stuck in traffic, you can hands get virtually quickly, expressly in congested cities. Although ebikes won’t work on every route or in all weather, they could hands handle a large percentage of the mail and packages the USPS delivers every day. Will it overly happen? Let me know what you think in the comments below.

Bottom line, e-bikes for mail wordage is a game changer, and other countries have once figured that out. It’s time for the US Postal Service to join the party.

Ride On.