black and white cat!

OXFORD postman Navnit Vyas has a new role - as the city's very own Postman Pat.

Navnit, 41, is helping to test-drive the latest technology, an electric Carryall van, which is just the job for weaving in and out of busy city centre traffic.

The van, which has a top speed of 18mph, is being trialled over the next 12 months and will help beat pollution in Oxford because it is battery-operated.

Drivers are already getting an earful of jokes from passers-by because it is a double of the little red van used by children's favourite Pat and his black and white cat, Jess. Father-of-three Navnit, of Pauling Road, Wood Farm, Headington, is based at Royal Mail's delivery office in Oxpens Road. He said: "I recently started driving the van and there has been quite a lot of mickey-taking.

"People see me coming past and shout 'where is your cat?' I think it's fair to say that I am Oxford's very own Postman Pat.

"I know the Postman Pat show quite well because my nine-year-old daughter, Sonal, has watched it in the past.

"Although this is a bit of fun I do think it's definitely the way forward for Royal Mail delivery in Oxford because it cuts down on pollution.

"The vans are also extremely good at nipping in and out of traffic and making tight turns." The £6,000 carts can be charged up overnight from the mains and squeeze in a load up to 250kg - about 12,500 letters.

If the vans are a success in Oxford, where they are being used in central, northern and southern parts of the city, bosses nationwide could start swapping them for 36,000 of their regular vans and bicycles.

Royal Mail spokesman Mike Dalton said six Carryalls were being used in Oxford.

He added: "Oxford is the perfect place to trial these vans because of its own particular problems with traffic congestion.

"If these vans are a success here, then there is a good chance they will work in most city centres."

The vehicles, which are manufactured by a Peterborough company, are so quiet that they are fitted with a warning light on the front. "I often have to sound my horn as well," said Navnit, "because I want to warn pedestrians that I am coming."

Recently, the Oxford Mail took a test-drive in an electric car called the Sparrow

County council bosses said they would investigate purchasing some cars so that their staff could use them. Postman pat factfile * Remember Postman Pat? Of course you do. You're bound to have seen him on TV and you've probably read a few books based on him too. He is still a favourite with children today and his memory lives on.

* For those of you that don't know, Postman Pat is a modern British cartoon legend, created for BBC TV by Ivor Wood, and was based on the original stories written by John Cunliffe. The stories were about a postman called Pat who delivered mail in a small idyllic village in Yorkshire.

* On his rounds he had many adventures and new experiences. Exciting stories coupled with excellent animation made Postman Pat extremely popular. * Postman Pat was a hard working, honest and law-abiding post person and was a perfect example for the rest of the community to follow. He went about his job every day without fail and took pride in it. He worked in the small idilic village of Greendale. He spent most of his time driving through the twisty, narrow roads of the village delivering letters and parcels in his famous red van along with his trusty feline companion Jess.

Story date: Thursday 17 February

Converted for the new archive on 30 June 2000. Some images and formatting may have been lost in the conversion.