Royal Mail - Fleet

Fleet

Royal Mail is famous for its custom load-carrying bicycles (with the rack and basket built into the frame), made by Pashley Cycles since 1971. Since 2000, their old bikes have been shipped to Africa by Re~Cycle (10,000 as of 2008). In 2009, Royal Mail announced it was beginning to phase out bicycle deliveries, to be replaced with more push-trolleys and vans. A spokesman said that they would continue to use bicycles on some rural routes, and that there was no plan to phase out bicycles completely.

In addition to running a large number of road vehicles, Royal Mail uses trains, a ship and some aircraft, with an air hub at East Midlands Airport.

The following aircraft are included in the dedicated fleet:

• 1 Boeing 737-3Y0 G-ZAPV operated by Titan Airways.

British Airways aircraft are also used for airmail deliveries and bear a small Royal Mail logo towards the rear of the fuselage.

The RMS St Helena is a cargo and passenger ship that serves the British overseas territory of Saint Helena. It sails between Cape Town and Saint Helena, Ascension Island and occasionally Walvis Bay, Namibia. It also visits the Isle of Portland, England twice per year stopping at Tenerife en-route. It is the last dedicated Royal Mail Ship in service.

The London Post Office Railway was axed by Royal Mail in 2003—this had been a network of driverless trains running along a private underground track since 1927.