USPS to end Saturday mail delivery

[King Sid the Great 87]

heres an idea:

the USPS should provide a free PO BOX for all citizens with the option of paying a monthly fee or annual fee for the privilege of having it delivered to their home.

Who is paying for the land that will need purchased and the construction of the facilities required to house these "free" PO Boxes?

[mac5155]

heres an idea:

the USPS should provide a free PO BOX for all citizens with the option of paying a monthly fee or annual fee for the privilege of having it delivered to their home.

Who is paying for the land that will need purchased and the construction of the facilities required to house these "free" PO Boxes?

Youd go from needing 15 mail carriers per town to 2.

In the town of Everson, this is how it's done. No mail delivery. Everyone has a PO Box

[RJW76]

Canaan, where would they put those and how much would that cost? Are we going to put a huge building in every neighborhood/small town just for PO Boxes? Even if they fired every carrier and used their salaries to pay for the buildings, they would need that many more clerks (or convert carriers to clerks, thus not getting rid of anybody) to still sort the mail there. Or they can hire people to do it minimum wage, which is what everybody really wants.

One possible idea would be to offer Saturday delivery to your PO Box if you would like to rent one, but space would go quickly. There'd be a waiting list. Surely a lot people would say screw it and just wait, but a lot wouldn't believe me. Maybe it's taken for granted, but people want their mail. I hate the fact that the word service is slowly draining away from our name.

When I worked the window some of the older folks would tell me that they had to go to the corner or a designated place to get their mail. I imagine that was in the days of housewives and a much smaller population. A lot of the newer developments have what they call "cluster boxes" where all the mail is delivered in one group of boxes. Would be tough/space prohibitive to include everybody

I can't wait until people flood the post office on a Saturday to ask if the clerk can just go back and grab their mail for them. People need those gubment checks!!!!

[RJW76]

heres an idea:

the USPS should provide a free PO BOX for all citizens with the option of paying a monthly fee or annual fee for the privilege of having it delivered to their home.

Who is paying for the land that will need purchased and the construction of the facilities required to house these "free" PO Boxes?

Youd go from needing 15 mail carriers per town to 2.

In the town of Everson, this is how it's done. No mail delivery. Everyone has a PO Box

Sure, that works in Everson, Bakerstown and Forbes Road, but what about Monroeville, Penn Hills or the Mcknight Road PO?

[JS©]

Canaan, where would they put those and how much would that cost? Are we going to put a huge building in every neighborhood/small town just for PO Boxes? Even if they fired every carrier and used their salaries to pay for the buildings, they would need that many more clerks (or convert carriers to clerks, thus not getting rid of anybody) to still sort the mail there. Or they can hire people to do it minimum wage, which is what everybody really wants.

One possible idea would be to offer Saturday delivery to your PO Box if you would like to rent one, but space would go quickly. There'd be a waiting list. Surely a lot people would say screw it and just wait, but a lot wouldn't believe me. Maybe it's taken for granted, but people want their mail. I hate the fact that the word service is slowly draining away from our name.

When I worked the window some of the older folks would tell me that they had to go to the corner or a designated place to get their mail. I imagine that was in the days of housewives and a much smaller population. A lot of the newer developments have what they call "cluster boxes" where all the mail is delivered in one group of boxes. Would be tough/space prohibitive to include everybody

I can't wait until people flood the post office on a Saturday to ask if the clerk can just go back and grab their mail for them. People need those gubment checks!!!!

Nor are the cluster boxes very efficient when you have multiple people who regularly receive packages or if they receive packages that are larger than 12x12. In the end, you'd still have to drive to their place to drop it off. If you decide against that, then it comes back to picking up packages at the PO...which then becomes "then why don't they pick up their mail at the PO?"

[mac5155]

I wonder how many people NEED mail to survive. Probably the same folks that still have landline telephones. I could handle getting all my mail delivered once or twice a week.

[Digitalgypsy66]

3-D printers, when they become the tablets/smartphones/microwaves of the future (where no middle class home is without one), will put the final nail in snail mail. Think about it - order something online, and it is manufactured or printed in your home. No shipping, instant delivery. We're already doing this with books, music, video games, and movies. Once these printers can handle multiple materials and the cost drops significantly, look out...

[RJW76]

I wonder how many people NEED mail to survive. Probably the same folks that still have landline telephones. I could handle getting all my mail delivered once or twice a week.

You'll be shocked to hear this, Mac, but not everybody thinks like you.

But seriously, I could get by too with getting mail probably one day a week tbh. But plenty of people and especially businesses get stuff that they need every day, including Saturday.

[shafnutz05]

I still look forward to getting magazines that I may or may not actually read

[Jopaz]

People will adjust to this. Anything that is really urgent will be sent by email, Fedex, etc.
Whatever comes in the USPS mail can wait until Monday.

Most other government services are provided on a normal 5 day workweek. Why should the mail be different?
Also, UPS does not deliver on Saturday, and you pay extra to have FedEx Saturday delivery.
The USPS will still deliver packages on Saturday from what I have read.

Time to move on, this should have been done years ago.

[Idoit40fans]

Time to move on, this should have been done years ago.

A lot of this.

[RJW76]

3-D printers, when they become the tablets/smartphones/microwaves of the future (where no middle class home is without one), will put the final nail in snail mail. Think about it - order something online, and it is manufactured or printed in your home. No shipping, instant delivery. We're already doing this with books, music, video games, and movies. Once these printers can handle multiple materials and the cost drops significantly, look out...

What do you mean manufactured in my home? Will this printer make me an authentic Pens jersey? If so, that would be awesome.

[mac5155]

People will adjust to this. Anything that is really urgent will be sent by email, Fedex, etc.
Whatever comes in the USPS mail can wait until Monday.

Most other government services are provided on a normal 5 day workweek. Why should the mail be different?
Also, UPS does not deliver on Saturday, and you pay extra to have FedEx Saturday delivery.
The USPS will still deliver packages on Saturday from what I have read.

Time to move on, this should have been done years ago.

If you use FedEx Home Delivery, they work Tues-Sat. No additional fee for Saturday delivery.

[mac5155]

3-D printers, when they become the tablets/smartphones/microwaves of the future (where no middle class home is without one), will put the final nail in snail mail. Think about it - order something online, and it is manufactured or printed in your home. No shipping, instant delivery. We're already doing this with books, music, video games, and movies. Once these printers can handle multiple materials and the cost drops significantly, look out...

What do you mean manufactured in my home? Will this printer make me an authentic Pens jersey? If so, that would be awesome.

There are ones capable of making a fully functional assault rifle. So, have at it.

[Pitt87]

I'm not saying the USPS is perfect. The system is beyond broken. But saying, "Well, look at UPS and Fedex, they're doing great" is laughable. The USPS is failing because of several reasons and very few of them can be "fixed".

If most people in America need to send a package or buy a book of stamps, they can go to the local USPS post office which is oftentimes less than 5 miles away. If they want to send a package via UPS or FedEx, they usually have to drive 25 miles or more. I'd love to send more stuff via FedEx but I'm not driving there every day or week when I can drive 1 mile down the road. Plus the last time I went to the FedEx shipping center they had 1 clerk working and I waited over 30 minutes while she checked out the 5 people in front of me. And they didn't even have any boxes.

UPS and FedEx don't stop at everyone's house every day. So if someone wants to send little Jimmy a birthday card or return their Netflix DVD, they can put it in their mailbox and know that the postal carrier will be by to pick it up.

The taxpayer doesn't provide me that kind of convenience (and 50 cent stamps) from FedEx or UPS.

FIFY.

Check your facts... USPS gets $0 from tax payers...

Yadi, yadi, this is a fun stat to cite, but USPS lives by its government-granted monopoly on the daily deliverance of mail. Because of it, private companies who could provide better service (yes, FedEx and UPS would have cheap letter delivery if they could) aren't able to do so. Thus, we're stuck with inferior service and that likely costs more.

Its not a 'stat', its a fact. They file a 10-Q statement with the SEC just like other companies do. The level of transparency is unmatched within the Federal Government: https://about.usps.com/who-we-are/financials/financial-conditions-results-reports/fy2012-q3.pdf

You're not 'stuck' with any service. You have dozens of letter and shipping choices. FedEx is actually ABLE to deliver more services as a result of their SmartPost service, which is ultimately delivered by USPS. Its a billion-dollar contract. How is that monopolization if they offer the service to competitors?

[RJW76]

People will adjust to this. Anything that is really urgent will be sent by email, Fedex, etc.
Whatever comes in the USPS mail can wait until Monday.

Most other government services are provided on a normal 5 day workweek. Why should the mail be different?
Also, UPS does not deliver on Saturday, and you pay extra to have FedEx Saturday delivery.
The USPS will still deliver packages on Saturday from what I have read.

Time to move on, this should have been done years ago.

I remember at one point early in my career that there was talk of delivering mail on Sunday there was so much mail. So I can't say I agree that it should've been done years ago. There were never really financial problems until the last five years. Obviously it may not reach those levels again.

Of course. I admit, I'm speaking with 100% self interest on this topic. Everyone will have no choice to adjust (I said earlier that I'm seriously reconsidering how I must make a living). But I think it's shortsighted and I'm worried for my business that it will not go well. And for, I don't know, the first 230+ years it worked pretty good, and nobody recognizes that Congress can make it work great again with one measly vote to get rid of something NOBODY wanted (the USPS AND the unions hated this thing from day one--and you'll never see them agree on anything). It was pretty ok up until the pre-payment thing.

But, I will have weekends off #score

[RJW76]

People will adjust to this. Anything that is really urgent will be sent by email, Fedex, etc.
Whatever comes in the USPS mail can wait until Monday.

Most other government services are provided on a normal 5 day workweek. Why should the mail be different?
Also, UPS does not deliver on Saturday, and you pay extra to have FedEx Saturday delivery.
The USPS will still deliver packages on Saturday from what I have read.

Time to move on, this should have been done years ago.

If you use FedEx Home Delivery, they work Tues-Sat. No additional fee for Saturday delivery.

But is it $.46 a pop to send?

[RJW76]

3-D printers, when they become the tablets/smartphones/microwaves of the future (where no middle class home is without one), will put the final nail in snail mail. Think about it - order something online, and it is manufactured or printed in your home. No shipping, instant delivery. We're already doing this with books, music, video games, and movies. Once these printers can handle multiple materials and the cost drops significantly, look out...

What do you mean manufactured in my home? Will this printer make me an authentic Pens jersey? If so, that would be awesome.

There are ones capable of making a fully functional assault rifle. So, have at it.

Hmmph! Next thing you'll be telling me that you have TWO TV's in your house.

[canaan]

heres an idea:

the USPS should provide a free PO BOX for all citizens with the option of paying a monthly fee or annual fee for the privilege of having it delivered to their home.

Who is paying for the land that will need purchased and the construction of the facilities required to house these "free" PO Boxes?

im spitballing so it was just a thought in my head.

[pfim]

So basically, the post offices would still be open on Saturday, just no delivery? Seems like a no-brainer.

[TheHammer24]

You're not missing anything.
It's a service that can't be replicated by the private sector...As you have just pointed out.

That's insane. The federal government (the most inefficient producer) has managed stay in the black by giving itself a monopoly in performing the service. What in the world makes you think FedEx couldn't do so profitably? It has all the infrastructure in place. It need only higher more trucks and streamline routes to over duplicity, while it would add all the letter revenue.

Because there's no profit to be made from stopping at every address in the country, so someone's Aunt Martha in Maine can send them a birthday card.
FedEx and UPS offer a different service than the USPS.

You can argue that the USPS shouldn't exist at all, but to claim that the full scope of their services could be done more cheaply in the private sector is just silly.

C'mon Columbia, do you really think the USPS can sustain its existence based solely on revenue from this service but a private company could not turn a profit from doing so? FedEx is extremely efficient. Their existing structure would need change, but they possess all the technology needed to add this business. They already drive past nearly every house in an area; they would just add trucks, consolidate routes, and deliver the mail (for a profit) as they continue on their business.

Think about it: there are 20 houses on my street. A FedEx truck comes down it once a day and delivers one package for about $10 revenue? Now, if it could charge $0.50 a letter, it would still come down my street once a day, get the $10 for the package, but deliver a bunch of letters for an additional, what, $100 (20 houses x letters x $0.50). It would take him longer, but the revenue/per minute of package delivery is far lower than the revenue/minute from package and letter delivery. They'd add trucks, sure, but I'm sure they could make a large profit on this service.

[pfim]

I think that's a bit of an oversimplification. I certainly don't think it's as simple as a Fedex truck taking on some letters. You have receiving facilities, transportation, sorting facilities etc.

I honestly don't think Fedex or UPS would want the headache of regular mail delivery. And if they did, the changes they'd need to make certainly wouldn't benefit the consumer. There would be a drastic reduction in post offices, variable rates charged based on where the mail was delivered, and I'd think that mail delivery dates would be further reduced from 5 days. Because not only would these companies want to make a profit, they'd want to maximize the profit.

[Rylan]

Yea, no way FedEx or UPS would ever want to handle delivery of such mail. They would ruin themselves.

[columbia]

Yea, no way FedEx or UPS would ever want to handle delivery of such mail. They would ruin themselves.

Yep. There's a reason they haven't entered the full market space of the USPS.

[pfim]

Yea, no way FedEx or UPS would ever want to handle delivery of such mail. They would ruin themselves.

Yep. There's a reason they haven't entered the full market space of the USPS.

Well, they're not allowed to by law.

Still, I doubt very much that they'd want to.