On Sunday, February 6, the United States Postal Service (USPS) announced plans to submit an initial order for 5,000 electric delivery vans. The announcement was made to show that the USPS is committed to the fiscally responsible rollout of electric-powered vehicles for America’s largest federal fleet.
The Postal Service also announced plans to achieve 70% fleet electrification within the decade. Postmaster General and USPS Chief Executive Officer Louis DeJoy stated that the Postal Service would be open to increasing its number of electric vehicle orders “should additional funding become available.” The Postmaster tried to elaborate on the USPS’ financial challenges of committing to operating a cleaner Postal vehicle fleet.
“Moreover, comparisons of the Postal Service to private sector multi-national corporations that report yearly profits in the billions of dollars, and that are not required to go to 161 million delivery addresses in all climates and topographies six days per week, are not relevant in view of our perilous financial condition and universal service mission,” DeJoy clarified.
“We will be resolute in making decisions that are grounded in our financial situation and what we can realistically achieve while pushing hard to take delivery of safer, cleaner vehicles by next year. Given our large fiscal deficits and significant financial challenges, Congress is well aware of the additional resources that would be required if Congress would prefer the Postal Service to accelerate the electrification of our delivery vehicle fleet as a matter of public policy,” he explained.
The agency’s recent announcement stated clearly that the Postal Service generally does not receive tax dollars for operating expenses. It relies on postage sales, products, and services to fund its operations.
USPS’ New Delivery Van
On February 23, 2021, the USPS announced a 10-year contract with Oshkosh, WI, to manufacture a new generation of U.S.-built postal delivery vehicles. At the time, the agency stated that the new delivery van from Oshkosh would “drive the most dramatic modernization of the USPS fleet in three decades.”
As per the contract’s initial $482 million investment, Oshkosh was supposed to finalize the production design of the agency’s Next Generation Delivery Vehicle (NGDV). The agreement also stated that Oshkosh would assemble 50,000 to 165,000 NGDVs for the USPS. Last month, the NGDV’s design was showcased during CES 2022 in Las Vegas.
Biden Administration Pushes Back on the NGDV
Last week, members of President Joe Biden’s administration sent letters to the Postal Service, urging the agency to reconsider its plans to buy mostly gas-powered vehicles to upgrade its fleet. The agency’s plans to spend up to $11.3 billion on as many as 165,000 new gas-powered delivery vans in the next decade could have major implications for President Biden’s goal to convert federal cars and trucks to clean energy. The Postal Service fleet makes up a third of the US government’s fleet.
Accoring to the USPS, the NGDV is larger and has a more fuel-efficient internal combustion engine compared to the currently deployed Long Life Vehicle (LLV). The NGDV’s fuel economy is 14.7 MPG when air conditioning isn’t running compared to the LLV’s fuel economy of 8.4 MPG, which does not have an AC system. The new Postal delivery van will be fitted with safety features like 360 degree cameras, front and rear braking, and a driver airbag.
However, the USPS also designed the NGDV to accommodate advancements in technology in its 20-year life. The Postal Service declared that the NGDV has a platform that could be equipped with either an internal combustion engine or battery electric drive train.
The agency stated that its cost estimates—presumably referring to costs related to the NGDV—included the price of charging infrastructure. It plans to charge delivery vans in bulk at USPS facilities. The Postal Service is analyzing state and local electrical grid capacity to determine any potential upgrades it needs to implement at the grid-level.
Below is a letter from the White House to the USPS.
USPS Letter 2022 by Maria Merano on Scribd
The Teslarati team would appreciate hearing from you. If you have any tips, reach out to me at maria@teslarati.com or via Twitter @Writer_01001101.
News
Tesla Cybercab tests are going on overdrive with production-ready units
Tesla is ramping its real-world tests of the Cybercab, with multiple sightings of the vehicle being reported across social media this week.
Tesla is ramping its real-world tests of the Cybercab, with multiple sightings of the autonomous two-seater being reported across social media this week. Based on videos of the vehicle that have been shared online, it appears that Cybercab tests are underway across multiple states.
Recent Cybercab sightings
Reports of Cybercab tests have ramped this week, with a vehicle that looked like a production-ready prototype being spotted at Apple’s Visitor Center in California. The vehicle in this sighting was interesting as it was equipped with a steering wheel. The vehicle also featured some changes to the design of its brake lights.
The Cybercab was also filmed testing at the Fremont factory’s test track, which also seemed to involve a vehicle that looked production-ready. This also seemed to be the case for a Cybercab that was spotted in Austin, Texas, which happened to be undergoing real-world tests. Overall, these sightings suggest that Cybercab testing is fully underway, and the vehicle is really moving towards production.
Production design all but finalized?
Recently, a near-production-ready Cybercab was showcased at Tesla’s Santana Row showroom in San Jose. The vehicle was equipped with frameless windows, dual windshield wipers, powered butterfly door struts, an extended front splitter, an updated lightbar, new wheel covers, and a license plate bracket. Interior updates include redesigned dash/door panels, refined seats with center cupholders, updated carpet, and what appeared to be improved legroom.
There seems to be a pretty good chance that the Cybercab’s design has been all but finalized, at least considering Elon Musk’s comments at the 2025 Annual Shareholder Meeting. During the event, Musk confirmed that the vehicle will enter production around April 2026, and its production targets will be quite ambitious.
News
Tesla gets a win in Sweden as union withdraws potentially “illegal” blockade
As per recent reports, the Vision union’s planned anti-Tesla action might have been illegal.
Swedish union Vision has withdrawn its sympathy blockade against Tesla’s planned service center and showroom in Kalmar. As per recent reports, the Vision union’s planned anti-Tesla action might have been illegal.
Vision’s decision to pull the blockade
Vision announced the blockade in early December, stating that it was targeting the administrative handling of Tesla’s facility permits in Kalmar municipality. The sympathy measure was expected to start Monday, but was formally withdrawn via documents sent to the Mediation Institute and Kalmar Municipality last week.
As noted in a Daggers Arbete report, plans for the strike were ultimately pulled after employer group SKR highlighted potential illegality under the Public Employment Act. Vision stressed its continued backing for the Swedish labor model, though Deputy negotiation manager Oskar Pettersson explained that the Vision union and IF Metall made the decision to cancel the planned strike together.
“We will not continue to challenge the regulations,” Petterson said. “The objection was of a technical nature. We made the assessment together with IF Metall that we were not in a position to challenge the legal assessment of whether we could take this particular action against Tesla. Therefore, we chose to revoke the notice itself.”
The SKR’s warning
Petterson also stated that SKR’s technical objection to the Vision union’s planned anti-Tesla strike framed the protest as an unauthorized act. “It was a legal assessment of the situation. Both for us and for IF Metall, it is important to be clear that we stand for the Swedish model. But we should not continue to challenge the regulations and risk getting judgments that lead nowhere in the application of the regulations,” he said.
Vision ultimately canceled its planned blockade against Tesla on December 9. With Vision’s withdrawal, few obstacles remain for Tesla’s long-planned Kalmar site. A foreign electrical firm completed work this fall, and Tesla’s Careers page currently lists a full-time service manager position based there, signaling an imminent opening.
Tesla Semi Program Director Dan Priestly teased the major improvements to the all-electric Class 8 truck on Thursday night, following the company’s decision to overhaul the design earlier this year.
Priestley said he drove the Semi on Thursday, and the improvements appear to be welcomed by one of the minds behind the project. “Our customers are going to love it,” he concluded.
Just drove the redesigned Semi. Our customers are going to love it. https://t.co/KZ88sf1CDL
— Dan Priestley (@danWpriestley) December 19, 2025
The small detail does not seem like much, but it is coming from someone who has been involved in the development of the truck from A to Z. Priestley has been involved in the Semi program since November 2015 and has slowly worked his way through the ranks, and currently stands as the Director of the program.
Tesla Semi undergoes major redesign as dedicated factory preps for deliveries
Tesla made some major changes to the Semi design as it announced at the 2025 Annual Shareholder Meeting that it changed the look and design to welcome improvements in efficiency.
Initially, Tesla adopted the blade-like light bar for the Semi, similar to the one that is present on the Model Y Premium and the Cybertruck.
Additionally, there are some slight aesthetic changes to help with efficiency, including a redesigned bumper with improved aero channels, a smaller wraparound windshield, and a smoother roofline for better aero performance.
All of these changes came as the company’s Semi Factory, which is located on Gigafactory Nevada’s property, was finishing up construction in preparation for initial production phases, as Tesla is planning to ramp up manufacturing next year. CEO Elon Musk has said the Semi has attracted “ridiculous demand.”
The Semi has already gathered many large companies that have signed up to buy units, including Frito-Lay and PepsiCo., which have been helping Tesla test the vehicle in a pilot program to test range, efficiency, and other important metrics that will be a major selling point.
Tesla will be the Semi’s first user, though, and the truck will help solve some of the company’s logistics needs in the coming years.
Tesla Cybercab tests are going on overdrive with production-ready units
Tesla gets a win in Sweden as union withdraws potentially “illegal” blockade
