Postmaster General May Cut Mail Delivery

Despite increasing fees, reducing costs by $1 billion dollars since 2002, freezing executive salaries and cutting jobs, our favorite governmental body is facing a harsh reality especially in our brand new Depression. [It's okay to call it a Depression now, right?] Last year, the U.S.P.S. was $2.6 billion dollars in the red.The total volume of mail sent last year was down by 9 billion pieces from the year before. "If current trends continue, we could experience a net loss of $6 billion or more this fiscal year," Postmaster General John E. Potter said in testimony for a Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs subcommittee.

This is cause for alarm amid growing cost concerns of employee pensions and benefits, coupled with the economic downturn and rising fuel costs. "It is possible that the cost of six-day delivery may simply prove to be unaffordable," Potter said. "I reluctantly request that Congress remove the annual appropriation bill rider, first added in 1983, that requires the Postal Service to deliver mail six days each week." If this change happens, it would probably effect delivery on typically light mail days, like a Tuesday, and not necessarily mean an end to Saturday mail.

There is a First Class stamp increase coming in May [all signs point to a $0.02 cent increase], but the Postmaster says he does not want to risk a larger increase in prices for fear that would cause the volume of mail to fall even more.

I can still live with 5 days a week of mail as long as I continue to receive my mail in the manner I'm used to i.e. mostly expediently and without major hassles. I'm amazed that the Post Office does what it does already with how crazy they are financially. What about you, members? How do you feel about this news?

[photo from aquinox_net]

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Comments

[Holly]

I would pay more for a stamp, even above a $.02 increase, to have 6 day a week delivery. I hope they work out another solution.

[Carla]

Maybe if we all write more letters, we can help the USPS with their financial problems! Write! Write! Write!

[Joshua M.]

We're in a recession, but I'd definitely not call it a depression. Not until people are having troubles feeding and clothing themselves. Right now people are not taking vacations and not getting a flat-screen TV and ordering fewer lattés.

[Ilona]

Eeeeeek! I would definitely pay more for a stamp, though I'm sure I could live with no delivery on Tuesdays... but it's the idea, the romantic history of mail delivery 6 days a week, whatever the weather... oh, I am most distressed!

[Bonnie Jeanne]

I'd rather a 5 day a week delivery than pay more for postage. Tuesday mail is always light. I am lucky if I get 1 postcard. My normal mail take is at least 5 postcards and a letter/note or two, every day but Tuesday. And even at work we get very little mail on Tuesdays (which is actually a very good thing because I'm still working on Monday mail come Tuesday morning...we get LOTS of mail). I do expect the post office to be open on Tuesdays if there is no delivery and I do expect mail pick-up for big organizations like mine on Tuesdays. And the Wednesday....oooo, Wednesday mail will be so welcome after not having delivery on Tuesday. Wednesday mail will be my lucky penny day... my day to rejoice that there are still mail enthusiasts out there like me who just like to put a few lines on something and send it.

[Jeffrey Dallas Moore]

There was a time when there was twice a day home mail delivery, those days are long gone. If post offices are still open on a non-delivery day we'd all be fine with only 5 days of delivery, if the post offices will be closed on the non-delivery day, that's bad. The best solution is for people to send more mail. Given these "trying" times, I think people will find that sending and receiving mail/postcards is quite a wonderful thing, so I suggest we all take it upon ourselves to send a letter or postcard to someone who we don't normally correspond with through the mail, perhaps they will then pick up the pen themselves.
Happy writing.