Even as the newspaper industry struggles with the transition to what some are calling the "viewspaper," meaning viewing the news on the Web, at least one local newspaper delivery person is changing the way newspapers are delivered. In my neighborhood, the guy that delivers the paper has abandoned his Jeep Cherokee for a small electric cart. It is a street legal, oversize golf cart with enough room and power to haul the driver and two hundred or so newspapers.
We are going to see many more all-electric vehicles in the next few years. For businesses that make mostly local deliveries (pizza, flowers, prescription drugs, etc.), all electric vehicles are a less expensive way to get products and services to customers. The purchase price of these electric utility vehicles is low relative to a full size van or panel truck, and they are inexpensive to operate. And as more and more electric utilities roll out power management that will enable lower differential pricing at night, the cost of charging them up overnight could also go down.