The Postal Service honored more than 170 employees with stellar safe driving records at the organization’s National Logistics Symposium in Kansas City, MO, last week.
The event, held Oct. 24-26, also featured safe driving demonstrations, educational sessions and training to promote safe driving practices.
“We want our drivers to return home to their families every night safe and sound. Their safety, along with the safety of the critical cargo they carry, is an important responsibility shouldered by the Postal Service,” said Kelly Abney, chief logistics officer. “Safe operations not only ensure our drivers are protected, but also protect the safety of the mail and the American public.”
During the awards ceremony, USPS honored 171 tractor trailer drivers with a National Safety Council Million Mile Award, which recognizes professionals who have driven 1 million miles or accumulated 30 years of driving without preventable incidents.
The award is considered the gold standard and highest honor for professional safe driving performance.
“I have been employed with the Postal Service for over 30 years, and as a tractor trailer operator, I always aim to do my job safely and efficiently,” said Carl Elleston, who works at the Brooklyn, NY, Processing and Distribution Center. “I am honored and appreciate that my commitment to safe driving is being recognized.”
Abney expressed his gratitude for the drivers who qualified for the award.
“It is only possible if a driver truly embraces safety as an integral part of his or her daily routine. Few drivers are able to reach this benchmark, and I hope to see all the award recipients reach the 2-million-mile threshold,” he said.
The Postal Service includes more than 11,000 uniformed motor vehicle, tractor trailer and noncommercially licensed operators.
The organization’s fleet includes about 2,300 cargo vans, 1,900 tractors and nearly 2,700 postal trailers. USPS leases approximately 1,900 cargo vans, tractors and sprinter vans.
Commuting within a 170-mile radius of their facility, USPS drivers traveled more than 167 million miles last year.
Nearly 300,000 letter carriers and truck drivers log more than 1.4 billion miles annually delivering to the nation’s 165 million addresses.