Americans switch on to electria
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WITH an order for 350 battery electric postal delivery vans and funds also set aside for a further 1000 vehicles during the 1975-76 budget the US Postal Service has committed itself firmly to the idea of electric power for a large proportion of its deliveries.
The order follows experience with 30 vans built and supplied by Harbilt, of Market Harborough, Northants. The 350 vehicles being supplied at the moment, however, are electric Jeeps being built by AM General.
The reliability of the 30 Harbilt HSVas has been a major factor in the decision. The fleet had a total availability of 9,438 days out of 9,500—a downtime of 0.1 per cent.
The running costs of the 30 Harbilts worked out at $385 per annum per vehicle. This figure compares with the $624 spent annually to maintain the petrol driven Jeeps normally used by the Postal Service.
Compared the American way (without taking into account interest on capital at 15 per cent per annum) the electrics come out cheaper at $1,085 amortised over 15 years to the $1,179 for the petrolengined Jeep amortised over six years.
The performance of the electric Jeep, selected as a result of a competitive tender, is as follows : top speed, 34-40mph; acceleration 0-30mph in 20 seconds; gradeability, 10 per cent at 16mph; range 32 miles with more than 300 stop starts.