Locals can expect to see bright red postal buggies at their mail boxes from now on as NZ Post rolls out the environmentally friendly vehicles in Whangarei.
The new buggies - known as Paxsters - introduced to Whangarei two weeks ago, can be charged using a standard wall socket and can reach speeds of up to 45km/h on the road.
Postie Ronald Walters has been behind the wheel of the new four-wheeled delivery machines and he's given them the tick of approval.
After 10 years delivery mail he considered the buggies safer and easier on the body than using a bike.
But he said it was slower to deliver the mail because of all of the getting on and off, to put the mail into boxes.
It is hoped they will reduce carbon emissions by up to 6.5 per cent. The battery life of a buggy is about 70km to 90km or six to eight hours.
There are four buggies in Whangarei and they will be in streets around the city, Kamo, Tikipunga and Maunu.
The central business district will remain the domain of posties on bikes and on foot because of the high number of pedestrians. Onerahi will also miss out on the buggies.
The drivers undergo comprehensive safety training and will give way to all other footpath users, including pedestrians and mobility scooters.
The drivers will require a restricted licence to operate the buggies on the road with other traffic.
Currently, drivers are still learning how to use the vehicles and are delivering only mail, not parcels. It's hoped they will be in full operation by the end of August.
The electric vehicles are small enough to travel the Whangarei suburbs via the footpaths yet they have the capacity to transport up to 200kg of parcels and mail.
"The combined delivery of parcels and mail reduces duplication, because instead of having a courier and postie going down the same street, one person will deliver parcels and mail at the same time," a NZ Post spokeswoman said.
The vehicles run on electricity so fuel consumption will be reduced as well as greenhouse gas emissions.
With the use of Paxsters, NZ Post can reduce carbon emissions by 6.5 per cent and carry more parcels and mail than before.