US Postal Service to use GM’s fuel cell van

The United States Postal Service has announced it will lease a fuel cell vehicle from the General Motors Corp. to deliver mail in the Washington area.

Federal officials said the two-year agreement for the use of a GM minivan represents the first commercial application of a GM fuel cell vehicle within the United States.

The Postal Service will begin using the fuel cell vehicle in September to coincide with the opening of the nation’s first hydrogen pump at a retail gas station.

GM and Shell Hydrogen last year announced a partnership to provide hydrogen for a GM fleet of fuel cell vehicles operating around Washington, D.C.

“The Postal Service sees this as an important test for GM’s fuel cell vehicle,” said Thomas Day, the Postal Service’s vice president-engineering. “The ever-increasing cost of fuel and the need to protect our environment highlights the need to move forward with this initiative.”