Re: 30K new gas powered vehicles
"But in less densely populated areas (basically 95% of the land area west of the Mississippi)"
I'd say they'd need a range extended PHEV at the most. Driving 250 miles at 50mph is 5 hours of driving. That's seems to be on the extreme side of things as the average speed will get rapidly reduced through needing to stop and make the deliveries. Keep in mind that the US postal service gets its employees from a union so there are plenty of mandatory breaks and meal periods. There are lots of little post offices all over the US. In some towns, there isn't a nearby gas station but there will be electricity. Being able to recharge at the post office would be a boon. I'm waiting for the post office to also offer boxes at the local offices at a reduced rate in exchange for no at-home delivery. I already have all mail and packages sent to my PO Box and not my home. The downside is the rates for my box keep going up and it's getting very expensive. Someday there will be a Postmaster General that figures out that not delivering on demand can save lots of money.
Biting the hand that feeds IT
