Latest U.P.S. Fuel-Saving Strategies: Leg Muscles and Hydraulics – Green Inc. Blog – NYTimes.com.

I’m not a fan of either major private shipping company (and am mourning the loss of DHL as a domestic shipping company), but if I had to choose between them, I’d probably go for UPS, for the very simple reason that, unlike FedEx, they’ve never lost one of my packages.

And they also go for cool things like using bikes to make deliveries in residential neighborhoods, and ordering hybrid vehicles that will enter service in early 2009.  The story really made me stop and thing.  It says a lot about the laziness of Americans, that in our search for alternative energy sources we ignore the fact that human-power can take over for machine-power.  Now you’re talking about fuel measured in calories, not gallons.

If we started doing more things by hand instead of machines, think of the impact it could have, not just on the environment, but on our health.  Increased physical activity would help combat the obesity epidemic.  And lower rates of obesity could mean lower rates of diabetes among people who would otherwise be healthy.  (See what happens when I get snowed in, I take a story about bikes being used for package delivery and extrapolate until I link it to a way to reduce diabetes.)

In short, I applaud the measures UPS is taking, and would encourage the comapny (and FedEx) to spread such measures throughout their company.  It will save them money in fuel, take care of the environment, and will promote a healthier workforce.