The Post Office’s (PO’s) first electric branded vehicle has been launched in Pembrokeshire, serving 11 communities. The company currently have 67 diesel mobile Post Offices operating across Wales, England, Scotland and Northern Ireland.
The mobile vehicle is a ‘tried and tested’ way of serving rural communities, allowing more space in the vehicle for retail and storage of parcels, while being cheaper to run than a non-electric vehicle. The trial is being operated by postmaster Mark Wilson, and visits Cosheston, Milton, Carew, St Florence, Broadmoor, Lawrenny, Angle, Herbrandston, St Ishmaels, Marloes and Dale.
Wilson said: “Our electric mobile Post Office is turning heads with its distinctive signage. People are used to the typical Post Office red vehicles, but the design on the vehicle is highlighting that this vehicle is better for the environment. It’s exciting to have the first of these in the UK. Customers have been praising our new vehicle as it is less polluting and looks good.”
A larger electric vehicle has less range than an electric car because of the weight of the vehicle, but it can do more than 100 miles before it needs recharging.
The longest mileage day for the Pembroke mobile Post Office is 60 miles, which gives lots of spare capacity and no risk of ‘range anxiety’. The vehicle is charged overnight, which removes the need for charging the vehicle whilst out and about or the need to make a detour to find a compatible charger.
It can also sell the same range of Post Office services as those provided by a postmaster’s main branch, including mail, foreign currencies if pre-ordered, banking on behalf of all the major high street banks, bill payments and vehicle tax.
Wilson continued: “It’s the same height as the previous vehicle, but slightly wider, but still fine for country lanes. There’s a better layout inside, which provides more space to offer more retail to the communities that we visit and more storage space for parcels, as these days there are lots of home shopping returns and people selling items on eBay and other re-sale sites. Colleagues working on the mobile are pleased with its road handling and how smoother it is to drive with automatic transmission.”
Nigel Parry, Post Office National Outreach Model owner, which includes mobile Post Offices, said: “We know the green credentials of these vehicles, they are better for the environment as there are no emissions polluting communities. These vehicles are cheaper to run and to maintain.
“Crucially we are testing these vehicles whilst serving communities to ensure that they are fit for purpose. We want to see how they perform in real life conditions.
“Hilly terrain, cold weather, traffic jams and the age and condition of the battery would all affect the range of a vehicle, so we need to ensure there is spare capacity to serve outlying communities at any time of the year.”
Next month another electric mobile Post Office will be introduced in East Anglia, followed by a third vehicle at a location still to be determined, to fully test the suitability of these vehicles for rural locations and the cost compared to traditional vehicles.
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