Billions wasted on EVs for postal service

 Federalist Wire:

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The United States Postal Service’s ambitious plan to transform its delivery fleet into an eco-friendly powerhouse has hit major roadblocks, delivering just 250 electric mail trucks in over two years despite nearly $10 billion in funding. Backed by $3 billion from the 2022 Inflation Reduction Act, the initiative aimed to roll out 35,000 battery-powered vehicles by September 2028.

However, the sluggish progress has sparked outrage among Republican lawmakers, who call the project a wasteful “boondoggle” and are pushing to claw back the remaining $1.3 billion.

The program, a cornerstone of the Biden administration’s environmental goals, has been mired in technical setbacks. Oshkosh, a Wisconsin-based defense contractor hired for $2.6 billion to produce the vehicles, has struggled significantly.

By November 2024, only 93 electric trucks were ready—far below the expected 3,000, according to the Washington Post. Production woes include faulty airbag systems and severe leaks during testing, with one report describing “water [pouring] out as if [the vehicles’] oversize windows had been left open in a storm.” An Oshkosh executive tried to flag these issues in 2022 but was reportedly silenced by higher-ups. “This is the bottom line: We don’t know how to make a damn truck,” an insider told the Washington Post.

With $1.7 billion already spent, Republican lawmakers are demanding accountability. “Biden’s multi-billion-dollar EV fleet for the USPS is lost in the mail and more than $1 billion is postmarked to order more,” Sen. Joni Ernst (R-Iowa) said to the New York Post.

“I am working to cancel the order and return the money to the sender, the American people. The rescissions package is a great start, but Congress must keep its foot on the pedal and make DOGE a lifestyle by stamping out waste like this on a regular basis.”

The project’s challenges coincide with a leadership transition at USPS. Former Postmaster General Louis DeJoy stepped down earlier this year, leaving new appointee David Steiner, who started Monday, to tackle the fallout.

DeJoy had expressed frustration with the slow pace, reportedly criticizing “a production plant in South Carolina.” He emphasized that he is “in the parcel delivery business, not the vehicle manufacturing business,” according to a source familiar with the matter, per the New York Post.

USPS ordered 9,250 Ford E-Transit electric vehicles, with nearly 8,000 delivered, and issued a call in December 2023 for suppliers to provide “at least 12,000 battery-electric” trucks by October 2025 and “at least 1,500 internal combustion engine” trucks starting in October 2024.
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I live in rural Texas and do not recall ever seeing an EV postal vehicle.  Deliveries around here are in gas-powered vehicles.  I do occasionally see people in Teslas, but they are not delivering mail.