Most cars in the US Postal Service really need this. They were intended with a 24 year life cycle and are just getting old. Agency reports say that replacing the entire fleet with similar autos would cost $ 4.2 billion. Is replacement the only option?
Article Resource: U.S. Postal Service looking for vehicle replacement By Car Deal Expert
Postal Service and LLVs
The right handed delivery trucks the postal service uses are known as LLVs — Long Life Autos. With daily driving, the trucks had a 24 year life cycle. That 24 year lifecycle is coming to a close. The Postal Service Inspector General explained that, over the next eight years, the Postal Service would spend more repairing the vehicles than replacing them.
Price of repairing USPS cars
In 2009 alone, the Postal Service spent $ 524 million on LLV repair. Generally it is better to repair automobiles instead of replace them. The average repair bill for each LLV is about $ 5,600, with some going as high as $ 40,000. The vehicles don’t generally require specialized maintenance, although the right-handed driving setup can cause more costly maintenance at times.
Replacing the LLV fleet
The cost to benefit comparison of continuing to repair the LLV fleet is quickly turning upside down. In the next eight years, the postal service will actually lose money if it repairs instead of replaces any autos that have a repair bill that cost a lot more than $ 3,500. Straight-across replacement of the full LLV fleet would cost $ 30,000 per truck.
Testing Postal Service automobile alternatives
There is a lot of research going into US Postal Service delivery autos. The USPS has offered a $ 50,000 reward to firms for providing a working prototype of a USPS car by August. Letter carriers in many other areas are testing three-wheeled electric vehicles, bicycles, and a lot more traditional minivan-style autos for delivering the mail, rain or shine.
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