In the wake of recently debuting their first electric vehicle (EV) charging stations in Atlanta, Georgia, the United States Postal Service (USPS) will continue its electrification process by buying six Lifestyle Delivery Vehicles (LDV) 190s from EV upstart Canoo.
According to a report from Car and Driver, USPS will purchase this small fleet of LDV 190s from Canoo during the first quarter of the year.
Who Is Canoo?
As a report from Motor1 points out, even though California-based company Canoo has yet to deliver a single EV to customers, they have still signed multiple deals with government entities. They’ve signed an agreement with NASA to supply them with transport vehicles, and the US Army has similarly looked into having Canoo supply them with transport vehicles. Canoo also claims that they have delivered a fleet of their EVs to the Oklahoma state government.
According to Car and Driver, Canoo has stated that they are “honored to participate as one of the potential suppliers” for USPS’s electrification process.
Motor1’s report speculates that the Canoo LDV 190 will likely provide 200 miles of driving range and 200 horsepower (the base model, though some specs can give as much as 350 horsepower.) They also state that the Canoo LDV 190 will be capable of hauling up to 1,624 pounds of mail with its 172 cubic feet of cargo space. The LDV 190 also comes with a 79 kWh battery pack capable of DC fast charging, which Car and Driver notes can charge as fast as 150 kW and can allegedly charge 60 percent of the battery in around 32 minutes.
At 193.7 inches long, the Canoo LDV 190 is slightly longer than the thousands of Ford Transit Connect vans the USPS currently uses until their (highly aesthetically unpleasing) New Generation Delivery Vehicles (NGDVs) are set to go this June. Canoo’s lifestyle van also sports a 10.2-inch touchscreen and heated seats (not to mention a heated steering wheel.)
Regarding their upcoming purchase of the Canoo LDV 190s, the USPS told Motor1 that it is looking to “explore commercial-off-the-shelf electric delivery vehicles that have the potential to meet the unique requirement of our delivery mission.” Given the USPS’s significant $40 billion investment in transitioning to an all-electric delivery vehicle fleet, it’s safe to say that they will be exploring plenty of options as part of what Postmaster General Louis DeJoy has described as their “10-year Delivering for America plan,” to “transform our operating processes and invest in new automation, new technologies, and upgraded facilities and vehicles” to “reduce our costs, slash our carbon footprint and minimize waste.”
It will be interesting to watch out for how Canoo’s significant, pod-like LDVs perform for the USPS and other government agencies as these vehicles hit the road.