USPS to propose 5-day mail schedule, major cuts

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Dark Knight

Dark Knight

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Snail mail might soon get even slower.

The U.S. Postal Service plans to propose Tuesday an adjusted mail service schedule, which will likely cut Saturday delivery. The agency will also suggest closing some branches and expanding its use of self-service kiosks in grocery stores and other popular retail spots, as part of its effort to work its way out of a mountain of debt.

USPS posted a $3.8 billion loss in its 2009 fiscal year, the latest in a multiyear string of whopping losses. Mail volume was down 12.7% for the year, a trend the agency expects to continue over the next decade as more consumers opt for online bill payments and message delivery.

The Post Office plans to announce the specifics of its proposed new business model on Tuesday. Its plans will then go before Congress for review. A significant postal price hike is also under consideration, although the price most consumers care about -- the rate for a first-class stamp -- is locked in at 44 cents for 2010.

http://finance.yahoo.com/news/USPS-to-propose-5day-mail-cnnm-4552368.html?x=0
 
It has to go through Congress to be approved. The way Congress is running right now, the whole idea will probably come to a screeching halt.
 
I'd have no problem with a 5 day delivery schedule. It probably should have happened a long time ago. Rush overnight delivery services will still be available when necessary.

I'm all for a 5 day delivery schedule.

jmo
 
I am out doing things a lot of Saturday and it would probably be better for me if mail wasn't delivered that day. If they have to do something to cut costs, this seems reasonable to me.
 
I don't think mail needs to get any slower, and having 2 days in a row with no delivery would be more disruptive than you might think. At least spread the days off out a bit. Maybe the Postmaster General needs to take a major paycut first.
 
I agree with Dark Knight. Two non-delivery days in a row will be very disruptive. If they are going to cut a day then do it mid-week.
 
my husband works for PO and this step is coming way too late...doubtful it can be of much help at this point...i think 5 days a week is plenty...hope they do it but as poster says, if it has to go thru congress...forget it. i thinh government has a pact not to agree on anything as it might seem like the other side is getting an edge somehow...
 
I've mailed items on a Sunday to find they were delivered to a near destination on a Monday, Tuesday at the latest.

If the mail continued to move over the weekend but only the Saturday deliveries were eliminated, I'm all for it.

Saturday is my designated day to sort thru the week's snail, a good 98% of which goes directly to the recycle bin.

I know it's unlikely to happen, but what about increasing the rates for bulk (advertising) mail?

I for one would be happy, as would the trees.
 
Just for a little walk down Memory Lane and to reveal I am older than dirt, I remember when I was a child in the 1950s, a stamp for a letter was 4 cents and we had TWO mail deliveries a day.

Back then, we had no idea how things would be today!
 
I think it's a great idea and long past due!
 
I'm fine with 5 days, and I give 2 thumbs up to the idea on raising bulk mail prices.

It should be a lot more expensive to annoy people.

Hey, while we're at it, can we bring back local telephone charges for telemarketers only???

That would be awesome!
 
How about if we could sign up for how many days of home delivery we would like. I would be very OK with 1 or 2 at my home.
 
I really don't care about not receiving my bills and all of the annoying junk mail for one less day per week. Where it is going to hurt is with some mail-based subscriptions such as Netflix. The value for your money depends a lot on efficient mail delivery in both directions. I have had Netflix for 8 years and love it, but no Saturday delivery is going to cut down on the number of dvds I can receive per my monthly fee and also interfere with weekend movie viewing. I am sure there are other similar subscription services that will be affected terribly from this.
 
Our govt. agencies worry me...........I don't know if this will fix it, help yes.......but I still think it won't be enough. Maybe I'm wrong....
 
I'm all for getting rid of Saturday delivery. If I send back my Netflix movies on Weds. I get them back by Friday anyway! Now if I could just make sure they don't deliver junk mail!! :banghead:
 
I think stopping Saturday delivery is a good idea, too....just think of all the businesses that aren't open on Saturdays that can just as well get their mail on Monday.

ITA idea this should have been presented years ago.
 
I have to disagree. I do a lot of my shopping online and since the township we live in thinks we live too close to the post office to receive delivery to our house, we are forced to have a PO box. A lot of time Saturdays are the only day I am able to make it to the post office during business hours to pick up my parcels that are too large to fit into our box (all of them). I do not want to pay more for less service.
 
This would impact businesses to some extent, who usually cannot have ENOUGH mail deliveries, and would rather not have to pay extra for overnight shipping in this economy, where every penny counts and people are being laid off.

This would also affect the working poor, the overall poor, and the needy, in general, the most. People who live paycheck to paycheck often have a VERY tight schedule when it comes to sending in bills. Often it has to be at the very last minute, depending when they get paid. One less day of delivery messes that up quite a bit, and could lead to overdraft and late fees and other additional problems that they don't need. And people who are waiting for SS checks or other forms of fixed income might also have to wait an extra day, which can make all the difference in the world.

If we look beyond ourselves, we'll see it's about more than just our junk mail and our own inconveniences. We have to think about how hard it is for others, for reasons we never might have otherwise thought about or even known about. (Out of sight, out of mind.) :)
 
If they just cut out all of the junk mail that is processed, that would save tons!! I just throw it away so it's no use to me.
 
Again Dark Knight has great points (can you believe I am agreeing with you? again?!)
A delay of receiving a paycheck or SS check can lead to a disaster for many people. Direct deposit is not a service that is available to everyone.
Junk mail is such a HUGE waste of resources and a threat to the environment. The first step should be to raise the cost of mailing junk mail high enough that it will discourage most advertisers. Let them invest their advertising $$ into newspaper/magazine ads, tv spots, web ads and their own web sites. I receive something in my mailbox every day, but at least a few days a week the entire content of my mailbox goes straight to the recycling bag because it is entirely junk mail and I don't even look at it. What a horrible waste! If they cut out junk mail, the postman could deliver the entire route in a shorter period. That would save the USPS a lot of $$.
 
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