Royal Mail has launched its first all-electric fleet at the Bristol Delivery Office. The Bristol East Central Delivery Office, located in the City’s Easton area, has had its 23 diesel vans replaced with fully electric equivalents. Six electric charging posts have also been installed on the site with the electricity coming from 100% renewable sources.
Bristol was selected for this trial due to the city’s plans for a Clean Air Zone (CAZ), which will require certain vehicles to pay a daily charge to enter its centre. Other Delivery Offices are also being considered for similar projects in the coming months, particularly those in places with existing or upcoming CAZs.
The electric vans have up to 60% more load space than the vehicles they have replaced, giving them the additional capacity to deal with growing parcel volumes. The vans can also travel up to 125 miles in between charges, depending on weather and load size.