An Post's New Buzz Fleet Gearing up to Deliver a Greener Christmas
- An Post unveils 45 Volkswagen ID Buzz vans in its latest electric vehicle (EV) fleet rollout
- The new “Buzz” fleet significantly reduces carbon emission levels in Irish cities and towns
- 30% of the overall An Post fleet is now EV
- Q1 2024 will see 32% of all delivery routes covered by EVs
With the festive season just around the corner, An Post is estimated to deliver over 10 million packages nationwide over the coming weeks. As 30% of delivery routes are covered by electric vehicles, soon to be increased to 32% by Q1 2024, over 100,000 parcels will be delivered daily, with that figure multiplying closer to Christmas, without contributing to carbon emission levels.
An Post has just added 45 Volkswagen ID Buzz vans to its electric vehicle (EV) fleet, marking another milestone in its sustainability journey. In its efforts to achieve net zero carbon emissions by 2030, with a 50% reduction by 2025, the new, larger “Buzz” fleet will significantly reduce An Post’s contribution to carbon emissions in Irish cities and towns, making a positive impact on the environment.
Of the 3,600 of An Post’s vehicles currently available, 1,000 of them are electric, making An Post the largest EV fleet operator in Ireland. With the introduction of this new “Buzz” fleet this number will increase to 1,250 by Q1 2024.
Commenting on the new fleet, David McRedmond, CEO of An Post says, “The rollout of this new “Buzz” fleet shows our ongoing commitment to a sustainable future for all. We’re excited about the positive impact it will have on our environment and the communities and customers we serve as we continue to reduce our carbon footprint and improve the quality of life in Ireland, now and for generations to come.”
An Post postal driver Ellen Langan said: “I love driving an EV and my customers love to see their parcels arriving in them. There’ll be literally millions of parcels to deliver all over Ireland in the run up to Christmas, it’s getting busier by the day. These Buzz vans couldn’t arrive at a better time and we’ve designed a great way of loading them up to make use of every bit of space.”
Having almost 3,900 delivery routes nationwide, 1,250 will be assigned an EV by Q1 2024, representing 32% of delivery routes.
An Post Sustainability Commitments
An Post’s Purpose is “To act for the common good and to improve the quality of life in Ireland, now and for generations to come.” They are focused on five UN SDGs relevant to their sector as these are where An Post has the greatest capacity for impact and action. At the centre of An Post’s sustainability strategy is their ambition to commit to and achieve targets. Their key targets include:
Net zero carbon target - Achieve net zero carbon emissions from our own operations by 2030, with a 50% reduction by 2025.
- An Post has reduced carbon emissions by 12% year-on-year and by 35% since 2009.
- Reduced total energy usage by 9.5% year-on-year by managing heating and air conditioning systems as well as reducing the number of kilometres travelled by vehicles and litres of fuel utilised
- An Post met their ambition of replacing all lighting with energy efficient lighting by 2022.
- They were the first Irish business to sign up to the “Beat the Peak” initiatives reducing electricity usage from 5-7pm.
50% of fleet to run on alternative fuel sources by 2025 target
- 30% of An Post fleet runs on alternative fuel sources
- The An Post HVO (hydro-treated vegetable oil) biofuel trial was expanded from 5 HGVs in Galway to 12 HGVs in Cork in 2022. They have found that HVO used 0.5 litres of fuel less per 100km on average than its diesel equivalent. There has been a 91.8% reduction in carbon emissions in the trial fleet compared to diesel fuel.