New Postal Service Delivery Vehicles Have Arrived in Concord, N.H.

New Hampshire residents are seeing a growing presence of new U.S. Postal Service (USPS) vehicles in the Concord area.

The Concord Monitor reported that the Postal Service NGDVs represent next-generation delivery vehicles. More than 130 of them are operating in New Hampshire out of nearly 7,000 NGDVs across the country. The NGDVs offer improved driver visibility and more interior space, and include air conditioning. This feature improves worker comfort compared with older Grumman vans that have been in service since the 1980s.

Distinctive design features of the NGDVs include a duck-billed shape, a very large windshield, an ultra-low hood for pedestrian-facing routes, and a roomy back area for standing and working.

Rollout delays occurred early on. The Oshkosh Corp. delivered only a fraction of the anticipated vehicles, according to The Washington Post, contributing to a slower nationwide adoption that is now expanding to New Hampshire.

Around 1,000 NGDVs are electric nationwide, although the USPS has not disclosed exact counts of electric versus gas-powered units by location.

Postal workers have been receptive to the shift in vehicle styles, which have received positive attention for their practicality and comfort.

According to the Concord Monitor, the NGDV rollout is part of a broader $6 billion contract to modernize the USPS fleet. Roughly half of the traditional vans will be phased out in the transition.

The Monitor further noted that the fleet transition involves replacing about half of the approximately 140,000 Grumman vans with a mix of NGDVs and other commercially available vans, including Ford E-Transit electric models and Mercedes Metris and Ram Promaster gas-powered vehicles.