The United States Postal Service announced plans today to end Saturday mail delivery with the exception of packages, which will still be delivered Monday through Saturday.
This new delivery schedule will take effect during the week of Aug. 5, 2013, and the Postal Service expects to generate cost savings of approximately $2 billion annually, once the plan is fully implemented.
“The Postal Service is advancing an important new approach to delivery that reflects the strong growth of our package business and responds to the financial realities resulting from America’s changing mailing habits,” said Patrick R. Donahoe, Postmaster General and CEO. “We developed this approach by working with our customers to understand their delivery needs and by identifying creative ways to generate significant cost savings.”
In recent years, the Postal Service has advocated shifting to a five-day delivery schedule for mail and packages. However, recent strong growth in package delivery -- a 14 percent volume increase since 2010 -- and projections of continued strong package growth throughout the coming decade led to the revised approach of maintaining package delivery six days a week.
“Our customers see strong value in the national delivery platform we provide and maintaining a six-day delivery schedule for packages is an important part of that platform,” said Donahoe, adding that with the rise in e-commerce, the postal service hopes to increase its role as a delivery provider of choice.
Once implemented during August of 2013, mail delivery to street addresses will occur Monday through Friday. Packages will continue to be delivered six days per week. Mail addressed to PO Boxes will continue to be delivered on Saturdays. Post offices currently open on Saturdays will remain open on Saturdays.
On another note, in the private sector XYZ company would not be telling their customers "Sorry, because our expenses are too high, we will just close 1 extra day per week". No, they would be getting their financial house in order. And in regards to the Post Office, this means staffing levels, pension funding and the size of their operations. All unpopular to consider, but imperative if they are to survive. Sadly good economics are somehow a mystery to government entities and need not apply to them.