Parcel Boxes

(Image from Post & Parcel)

While the corner mailbox in the U.S. is shrinking (I've been seeing reports of slot-only boxes; the horror!), the Royal Mail is taking an opposite approach. They are making nice big package boxes! From their announcement:

 

"Royal Mail is rolling out the UK’s first ever parcel postboxes to make sending parcels as easy as posting letters. It is just one of the ways Royal Mail is investing in its network to meet the growing demand for parcels – driven by the rise of online retail.

The 1,400 parcel postboxes will be positioned on high streets, at mail centers and in other convenient locations across 38 towns and cities. It means small businesses and online marketplace sellers can dispatch customer orders outside regular office hours using Click & Drop, Royal Mail’s market leading online labelling system."

What a concept! When you allow people to print their package postage at their homes, wouldn't it be great to have a way for them to also easily drop-off said packages? Come on, USPS, it is not that hard. I dare say, you'd get more people to use Click-N-Ship if you 1. told people about it and 2. didn't make drop-off such a pain.

 

But what about scheduling a pick-up, Donovan? Oh sure. Yep, that sounds great. Ya'll know I love the USPS, I really do, but I've been burned by no-show pick-up too many times to trust it. And I cannot just hand my packages to my carrier? Why? Because the carrier doesn't have the capacity for all the packages. A lot of city carriers are walking carriers and don't have vehicles. They carry the day's mail in their satchel. This has been my experience. If I could just put the packages in a box, I'd be so much happier. Right now, I do have the luxury of bypassing the line and leaving my packages in a spot on the counter, but that means that I still have to travel to the post office and that I kinda feel like a jerk skipping the line.

 

Thanks to member Alan for the link about this wisdom from the Royal Mail. I do hope someone at the USPS is paying attention!

 

Comments

[Kevin]

What!? They allow people to put a package weighing more than 13 ounces in a mailbox instead of making them stand in line to hand it to a clerk at a post office? What a novel idea!

[Annette]

The slot mailboxes are real -- I live in NYC and they're taking over. Apparently, things beyond mail were being thrown in and then there's the bomb factor. All the mailboxes around the UN are removed when they are in session and then replaced when it's over.

[Ana]

Bob says "I don't feel bad skipping the line. F-them, do your homework, people. You could skip the line too." I think he may need another cup of coffee to be the warm sunny person we know he is.

[ana]

I'm lucky enough to work at a large (greeting card) company so we have a parcel and postal drop-off location (actually, for letters, we have several) inside the building so I can leave my parcels in the drop-off bin if I can't make it to the post office.

[Lori]

But what about the USPS policy of letting you buy and print postage, attach, schedule a pickup day, and put out for letter carrier?

Well, I guess this would not work as well for people living in apartments.

So for an all around inclusive way, those would be cool here.

[Donovan Beeson]

Unfortunately, it has been my experience that they dont come for those scheduled pick-ups.

[Alan B]

I have yet to see one of these parcel boxes. Don't forget that pillar boxes in Britain have been 'slot only' since 1852, so this is a real innovation. Different designs have different size slots, though, and I know which round here take the biggest envelopes.