Royal Mail partners with LEVC to test electric van

Royal Mail has taken delivery of a prototype of LEVC’s new electric van for use in real-world testing.

The partnership with the Warwickshire manufacturer comes after Sutton Coldfield-headquartered DPD made the same move last month.

LEVC (London Electric Vehicle Company) has developed the VN5 which will launch later this year.

LEVC chief executive Joerg Hofmann said: “Royal Mail is one of the oldest postal services in the world and, like our London black cab, is part of British history and culture. It is great that these two iconic brands are joining forces for this trial.

“The VN5 prototypes will wear the iconic Royal Mail red livery and be used on routes that will test the vehicles ability to the full.

“These trials are crucial to the final development of the van, ahead of its launch later this year.””

Paul Gatti, fleet director at Royal Mail, added: ​”As a company, we are committed to making changes to our operations that reduce our environmental impact, whilst ensuring we continue to meet customer expectations.

“Alongside the introduction of electric vans in locations across our business, this trial is part of a programme of initiatives that allow us to experiment with ways to achieve this, whilst enabling us to continue to deliver letters and parcels safely, efficiently and responsibly.””