My understanding is that the bought a majority-gas fleet with the budget he had, and as congress have him additional money for EV purchases, he adjusted increasingly towards EVs.
Also, 2021 was a long time ago. It was easy in 2021 to say "We're transitioning to EVs by 2030!" but it was not easy to actually buy $6B in working EV vans... they were all hypothetical. That changed, and so the USPS purchases did accordingly.
> it was not easy to actually buy $6B in working EV vans... they were all hypothetical
I'm not really understanding the excuse-making. They already own EV alternatives in the form of the existing fleet. If they have insufficient funds, replace fewer trucks. Don't add more ICE to the roads.
The LLVs currently in use are tiny and have a 150-mile range. That's Nissan Leaf numbers. We're not asking for Rivians here. Figure it out.
The LLVs have also been in service for 35 years. Whatever replaces them is going to be there for a long time. The fact that so many of these are ICE is a disgrace.
ICE should be reserved strictly for routes that demand it.
Also, 2021 was a long time ago. It was easy in 2021 to say "We're transitioning to EVs by 2030!" but it was not easy to actually buy $6B in working EV vans... they were all hypothetical. That changed, and so the USPS purchases did accordingly.