USPS? getting delivery ever other day?

[Fxfymn413]

Over the past couple of years our delivery has gone from daily to every couple of days occasionally, to not getting mail for 10 days one time last summer. Our local post office is the pits and the Postmaster just doesn't seem to care.

We used to have our mail held when we travelled, but the office "lost" all of the saved mail twice. After being on hold for over an hour and when the call was answered the very rude clerk said no mail was there my wife drove the 15 miles to the PO and refused to leave the service window until it was found. They initially claimed that the only mail we got over a three week period was 3 letters and that is what they delivered.

It is at the point for me that I wish they would close the postal service and just privatize it. After all the Amazon delivery guy shows up two or three times a day, so I'm sure they could do a better job.

 

[HawkinsHollow]

No complaints on the USPS here, but I feel for those poor mail carriers. They do work some long hours.

 

[Rebeldad1]

this will be our 3rd day without mail. have to pickup at the post office. no driver available...

 

[EddieWalker]

When I first bought my land, I had issues with the lady delivering my mail. I know that she was throwing some of it away instead of delivering it. I complained to her supervisor, but that didn't solve the problem. Eventually it got better, and then she retired and the new lady was night and day better. In the last couple of years, I've been getting delivery 7 days a week. Seems like Sunday is the big day for them to deliver Amazon packages!!!

 

[Larry Caldwell]

The local post office has recovered some. In December, we were down to two deliveries a week, and those often happened at 9 or 10 PM. For the last couple of weeks we have had mail deliveries every day, sometimes even in the afternoon. The rest of the deliveries arrive by 7 PM. Outgoing mail obviously does not make it onto the mail truck when the carrier runs that late, so if it absolutely has to get there in the same week, drive into town and mail it early in the day.

 

[TheMan419]

When I first bought my land, I had issues with the lady delivering my mail. I know that she was throwing some of it away instead of delivering it. I complained to her supervisor, but that didn't solve the problem. Eventually it got better, and then she retired and the new lady was night and day better. In the last couple of years, I've been getting delivery 7 days a week. Seems like Sunday is the big day for them to deliver Amazon packages!!!

I believe the only thing they deliver is Amazon on Sunday. They have a special contract with Amazon to do the last mile. That contract is going by the wayside as Amazon builds out their own delivery fleet of subcontractors.

 

[Oaktree]

It seems to vary as to which part of the country you live in. In Pennsylvania, where I grew up, each place out in the country had its own mailbox sitting out front to which mail was delivered. Out here in Nevada the Post Office utilizes communal mailboxes that serve a whole area, people have to drive to the mailboxes and pick up their mail. The Post Office will not deliver to individual mailboxes.

I suppose that makes sense in an area as sparsely populated as where you live. PITA if you have a package that doesn't fit in the box, certified mail, postage due, etc. but part of the price you pay for living that far out. Probably not many places deliver pizza there either.

 

[Bedlam]

I believe the only thing they deliver is Amazon on Sunday. They have a special contract with Amazon to do the last mile. That contract is going by the wayside as Amazon builds out their own delivery fleet of subcontractors.

This is true for here. More Amazon trucks and less USPS. Im not sure if they are still getting the ''Fed Ex" stuff or not but many time mine is shipped and has arrived.(at the post office) and then has to be delivered from there to my house by USPS. Sometimes this adds a three day delay.A few times my sister had an order and it was said scanned as delivery. But that was to the PO. And thendays later she would receive it. But as far as wal mart was concerned it was 'delivered'. And a few times she got a refund or second item .

 

[NorTracNY]

It is at the point for me that I wish they would close the postal service and just privatize it. After all the Amazon delivery guy shows up two or three times a day, so I'm sure they could do a better job.

Oh GOD no! I'm certainly someone that uses Amazon a lot, but I'd NEVER want them to replace the post office. The delivery drivers are well below the quality/integrity of the typical postal delivery person. I'm rural and the house is not within view of the mailbox. Right now we have about a foot of snow. I just had the postal person drop off a package to my front porch. The last 3 Amazon deliveries have been just shoving the box into the snow underneath the mailbox at the road. If it wasn't for Amazon telling me that my package had been delivered ("left at front door"), I would never have found the package until at least 10 hours later.

 

[Oaktree]

Over the past couple of years our delivery has gone from daily to every couple of days occasionally, to not getting mail for 10 days one time last summer. Our local post office is the pits and the Postmaster just doesn't seem to care.

We used to have our mail held when we travelled, but the office "lost" all of the saved mail twice. After being on hold for over an hour and when the call was answered the very rude clerk said no mail was there my wife drove the 15 miles to the PO and refused to leave the service window until it was found. They initially claimed that the only mail we got over a three week period was 3 letters and that is what they delivered.

It is at the point for me that I wish they would close the postal service and just privatize it. After all the Amazon delivery guy shows up two or three times a day, so I'm sure they could do a better job.

Sucks to have a post office where they don't care/have an attitude, had a spell back in the 80s with something similar where I lived at the time. Are USPS employees still considered government (ie-civil service) workers who are almost impossible to fire once they attain tenure?
Thing is, at least in theory the USPS must deliver to all addresses by law, where a private delivery firm can cherry pick profitable routes, and that is one of the albatrosses around their neck. I have never seen an Amazon delivery vehicle, their deliveries here are all via UPS or USPS. Not sure where the nearest Amazon warehouse is, but the nearest return address on any Amazon package I've received has been from Stoughton, Mass.

 

[Fxfymn413]

I have never seen an Amazon delivery vehicle,

When Amazon started doing their own deliveries they would send the trucks up from Richmond, about 40 miles, but it wasn't long before that stopped. Then in the last year they opened a warehouse in the next county north of us and started local deliveries again. I'm convinced the reason they are doing their own deliveries is the inconsistency of the USPS service. I am currently waiting on two USPS deliveries, one of which should have been here last Sunday and one from yesterday. No mail deliveries here for the last two days.

 

[Larry Caldwell]

Sucks to have a post office where they don't care/have an attitude, had a spell back in the 80s with something similar where I lived at the time. Are USPS employees still considered government (ie-civil service) workers who are almost impossible to fire once they attain tenure?
Thing is, at least in theory the USPS must deliver to all addresses by law, where a private delivery firm can cherry pick profitable routes, and that is one of the albatrosses around their neck. I have never seen an Amazon delivery vehicle, their deliveries here are all via UPS or USPS. Not sure where the nearest Amazon warehouse is, but the nearest return address on any Amazon package I've received has been from Stoughton, Mass.

When they hired DeJoy, they told him to wreck the USPS, and he has worked hard at it. They required $billions in retirement funds for employees that have not even been hired yet. If the privatize the USPS they can raid the pension fund. Dangle dollars. Rich people will snap at the bait every time.

 

[Ken45101]

The only real bummer is that when a package is too large to fit in the mailbox the carrier is only obliged to drive a certain distance to deliver it (I think that is 1/4 mile?)

They are required to deliver up to 1/2 mile.

Ken

 

[Ken45101]

When Amazon started doing their own deliveries they would send the trucks up from Richmond, about 40 miles, but it wasn't long before that stopped. Then in the last year they opened a warehouse in the next county north of us and started local deliveries again. I'm convinced the reason they are doing their own deliveries is the inconsistency of the USPS service. I am currently waiting on two USPS deliveries, one of which should have been here last Sunday and one from yesterday. No mail deliveries here for the last two days.

I haven't seen any Amazon deliveries transferred to the Post Office for a while. All the Amazon stuff here come via UPS, our best carrier.

I think the PO delivering UPS packages was a deal swap between UPS and USPS. USPS doesn't have planes but made a deal with UPS to fly the mail and in return USPS would do some local deliveries. I don't think that's going on any more. Recently the PO announced that mail may take an extra few days. I suspect it's related to the end of the USPS/UPS deal.

Maybe Amazon is flying the mail. We do not have any Amazon vehicles around here.

 

[Ken45101]

Oh GOD no! I'm certainly someone that uses Amazon a lot, but I'd NEVER want them to replace the post office. The delivery drivers are well below the quality/integrity of the typical postal delivery person. I'm rural and the house is not within view of the mailbox. Right now we have about a foot of snow. I just had the postal person drop off a package to my front porch. The last 3 Amazon deliveries have been just shoving the box into the snow underneath the mailbox at the road. If it wasn't for Amazon telling me that my package had been delivered ("left at front door"), I would never have found the package until at least 10 hours later.

I had Fedex do that, leave a package in the open under the mailbox at the edge of the road, and clim it was left at the front door. I raised holy h--- . Ultimately the district manager assured me that the driver would not be delivering any more packages around here.

Ken

 

[Bedlam]

I really cant complain about the people struggling to do the job. They have always been great. Im sure they get frustrated also. We our first Amazon delivery(their truck) about a year ago. My house is clearly marked. And Plowed and sanded. They marked the package as delivered. We couldn't find it until they posted a picture of it behind a huge oak tree butt. My grandkids found the tree and package the next day It was on a neighboring 80 acre vacant lot. Anyways Thankful for the picture part. Finally when they deliver now they come right up the driveway In the summer I leave a table with water and candy for any of the delivery drivers.
Once we get to not expect the old time service it isn't bad. Last week I ordered a gear and shear pins for the snowblower.4 days later the pins came via Fed Ex. the gear went USPS and the tracking just shows it was picked up. No scans since. This has happened before as well. It finally shows up and the tracking never changes from the shipped status.
Here UPS has the same driver for years and continues to amaze me how good they are...
I very much appreciate the jobs they all do..I just think with slowing etc. they are making a mistake. Soon it will be cost effective for a letter to go via fed ex.

 

[japody]

They are required to deliver up to 1/2 mile.

Ken

No, it's 1/4 mile.

 

[kenmbz]

I talk with out mailman every few weeks. He seems happy, though his route is really long out here.
He even complained that other Mail staff would not drive up to deliver pkgs.

In our last town the mailman was horrendous, did not speak english and who knows where some of the items went, like a roll of stamps, some checks etc. They finally fired him.

In MA, the postmaster was our neighbor down the block a 1/2 mile or so, next door up there. Nicest people and would go out of their way for everyone. They retired a while back. Wonder how things are there now.

Fedex has gotten better out here. 2 years ago they were dumping boxes everywhere, including in our neighbors snow bank, found about a month later. I see the same 2 drivers most of the time.

UPS is usually the same person and he is fantastic at making sure we get our packages.
He even rings the bell to let us know he stopped by.

 

[Oaktree]

I haven't seen any Amazon deliveries transferred to the Post Office for a while. All the Amazon stuff here come via UPS, our best carrier.

Must vary by region, almost all Amazon-shipped deliveries come USPS here. I don't know how much of the USPS infrastructure they use, I've heard they drop ship a lot to the local PO.

 

[Ken45101]

No, it's 1/4 mile.

No, it's a half mile. My wife is a retired rural carrier.

From the USPS webpage:

• For Accountable mail items and oversized parcels (not postage due), the carrier must try to gain the attention of the recipient, which includes honking their horn, in order to get them to come to the vehicle. If the customer doesn't come out and the house/delivery point is within 1/2 mile of the line of travel AND has a passable road, the carrier should attempt to deliver it. Otherwise, the carrier will leave PS Form 3849 and the customer will have to make arrangements to obtain the item.