The USPS' sweeping plan, titled "Delivering for America," promises…..

[Omega Man]

Pretty sure the post office as we (have) know it is doomed. It seems to me that they have spent too much time thinking that they were the only game in town. The most obvious clue should have been online bill-pay systems.
I have a great mail carrier that sees that I get street addressed mail gets to my P. O. Box. This mail includes sales flyers as the management “won’t allow 3rd class mail forwarding”. At the PO, they walk by my box to the trash instead of putting it in the PO box. This concept brings around the lost concept of “delivering the mail”.
BTW, a small PO box now costs $176.00/year…….to not deliver the mail.
It’s too bad a great American institution has gone down this path.
OM

 

[rich]

This doesn't make any sense either:

My small little post office box costs $72 a year. What is crazy is that if I set a mailbox out in front of my house the box becomes free. Most of my neighbors have put in their own boxes. We are in town, maybe a mile from the post office. I haven't bothered making the change since I plan on relocating in the near future and don't want the hassle of changing mailing addresses.

How can they deliver for free to remote boxes? Farmers and ranchers and everyone else out in the sticks get free mail.

No wonder they are going broke.

 

[Omega Man]

I did question the increase with, “I’m not sure how much more I can pay you to not deliver my mail”. The good thing is that dumb looks are still free
OM
Forgot to add, the box fee includes sending me an email when I have snail mail

 

[lee]

Forgot to add, the box fee includes sending me an email when I have snail mail

They also do that when they deliver to the house. It's an option.

 

[lkraus]

I did question the increase with, “I’m not sure how much more I can pay you to not deliver my mail”. The good thing is that dumb looks are still free
OM
Forgot to add, the box fee includes sending me an email when I have snail mail

Sounds like "Informed Delivery", which sends me an email every day so I can decide if it's worth walking out to the mailbox. Even on Sunday, when there are no deliveries. Also free.


Improvements are unlikely under Postmaster General DeJoy, who began his job with large ($30-75 Million) investments in trucking and logistics. After a lot of negative press, he and his wife have sold off most of that, but they still have close ties with some of the companies, who lease real estate from companies that the DeJoys are invested in. I don't think it is a coincidence that USPS has reduced air freight in favor of trucking.

 

[Omega Man]

They also do that when they deliver to the house. It's aa option.

Perhaps you missed my point
om

 

[lee]

Perhaps you missed my point
om

Guess I did. Still missing it

 

[Omega Man]

Guess I did. Still missing it

Post office endorsing email for communication. Most orders now have embedded order tracking through the carrier via email.
OM

 

[WalterK75]

Improvements are unlikely under Postmaster General DeJoy.

Game plan:
Cripple USPS
Sell it off to private for-profit company
Get rich at customers expense

 

[rick601]

Seems that among the few legitimate "jobs" of government, the postal infrastructure should have some serious thought- as roads are to commerce so post is to certain communication. or are we too busy calling other stretches "infrastructure"

 

[Visian]

Game plan:
Cripple USPS
Sell it off to private for-profit company
Get rich at customers expense

So... another sideways story.

Back in the early 90s, it was my good fortune to have been involved in the development of a certain "brown" company's first Internet site. This gave me some very deep insight to that company's business and its perspective on its competition.

The feeling at the brown company was significant fear of the USPO, not so much because it was government subsidized, but what it could do if it ever got its costs under control and it's sh!t together.

Interesting fact about the brown company: if you didn't drive the truck at some point during your tenure there was no way you were going to run the company.

 

[Omega Man]

Interesting fact about the brown company: if you didn't drive the truck at some point during your tenure there was no way you were going to run the company.

Nothing wrong with "ground up" experience.

OM

 

[Visian]

Nothing wrong with "ground up" experience.

I think it's why they're such a good company. Everyone at the top understands exactly what it is they do!

 

[Omega Man]

Just in-

TOPLINE The U.S. Postal Service will proceed with an $11.3 billion plan to replace its aging mail trucks with largely gas-powered new vehicles, the agency announced Wednesday, with Postmaster General Louis DeJoy ignoring calls from the Biden administration to purchase more electric vehicles.

I don’t have a problem with this at all. The increased costs associated with a jump to this many electric vehicles is usually missed. I can see 100K minimum to add enough electric upgrade and charging stations at our local post office. Of course this doesn’t even factor the design/build aspects of such an upgrade. States with bad winter weather will require additional consideration.

https://www.forbes.com/sites/alison...-buy-gas-powered-mail-trucks/?sh=5fb1b7aa2c31

OM

 

[ramble]

Good for DaJoy, and our carriers, our delivery gal drives one of the old rigs and has a pvc. pipe banded in the door for ram-air cooling!

 

[bigjohnsd]

I can not think of a better application for an Electric Vehicle than a mail delivery truck, especially as the units the USPO plans to procure get only NINE yes that is "9" Miles-per-Gallon! The perfect scenario, short distances to travel, stop and go driving, all night to charge. Seems like one of the most perfect applications to me and they keep them so long they will certainly amortize the additional costs of the EV and save Billion$ on fuel over the same time. NO BRAINER

 

[kbasa]

I don't believe that when the founding fathers wrote the Postal Service into our founding documents - the only agency mentioned in the Constitution - they expected that it'd have to make a profit or even break even.

Not everything needs to be subjected to the forces of capitalism, IMHO. I'm certain, given the political bent of this forum, others won't agree.

If you consider the purpose of the USPS, the founding fathers realized that if we wanted informed voters for our democracy, a method of distributing information was going to be necessary. In the same sentence, they also mention the creation of "post roads" to facilitate interstate commerce and trade.

We don't expect our road infrastructure to make money. Why have we bent the USPS into an expectation of profitability and not costing the country anything?

 

[dbrick]

Very well said, Dave. I agree.

 

[gregfeeler]

The USPS is expected to operate as a private entity would do, but under rules developed and oversight performed by 535 people whose primary interest is keeping their constituents happy and staying in their elected offices. Attempts by the USPS to make changes to become more efficient can and are blocked by congress. This led to a "why bother" attitude by the leadership of the USPS. Once a year they get called to congress and get lectured about how poorly run the USPS and how they must do better, but they get the money they need without making the required changes. Self-serving oversight combined with poor leadership within the USPS got us where we are today. Real positive change is unlikely to take place anytime soon. After all, $69 billion over 11 years is not so much to spend to get some votes.

Well said! Show me anything with as much Congressional involvement as the USPS suffers from which is a success.

 

[akbeemer]

Well said! Show me anything with as much Congressional involvement as the USPS suffers from which is a success.

Well, they do name and rename post offices and stop the USPS from closing post offices that serve very few.