[Smurfysmurf]

WASHINGTON – Massive deficits could force the post office to cut out one day of mail delivery, the postmaster general told Congress on Wednesday, in asking lawmakers to lift the requirement that the agency deliver mail six days a week.

If the change happens, that doesn't necessarily mean an end to Saturday mail delivery. Previous post office studies have looked at the possibility of skipping some other day when mail flow is light, such as Tuesday.

Faced with dwindling mail volume and rising costs, the post office was $2.8 billion in the red last year. "If current trends continue, we could experience a net loss of $6 billion or more this fiscal year," Potter said in testimony for a Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs subcommittee.

Total mail volume was 202 billion items last year, over 9 billion less than the year before, the largest single volume drop in history.

And, despite annual rate increases, Potter said 2009 could be the first year since 1946 that the actual amount of money collected by the post office declines.

"It is possible that the cost of six-day delivery may simply prove to be unaffordable," Potter said. "I reluctantly request that Congress remove the annual appropriation bill rider, first added in 1983, that requires the Postal Service to deliver mail six days each week."

"The ability to suspend delivery on the lightest delivery days, for example, could save dollars in both our delivery and our processing and distribution networks. I do not make this request lightly, but I am forced to consider every option given the severity of our challenge," Potter said.

That doesn't mean it would happen right away, he noted, adding that the agency is working to cut costs and any final decision on changing delivery would have to be made by the postal governing board.

If it did become necessary to go to five-day delivery, Potter said, "we would do this by suspending delivery on the lightest volume days."

The Postal Service raised the issue of cutting back on days of service last fall in a study it issued. At that time the agency said the six-day rule should be eliminated, giving the post office, "the flexibility to meet future needs for delivery frequency.

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20090128/ap_ ... ost_office

Only five days of possible smurf deliveries?????

[bwalters]

Lets give this a little thought. First why not raise the postal rate to 50 cents or 60 cents. I don't write letters I send email or call anyway. I don't send christmas cards or birthday cards I deliver them. We just had a rate increase the 18th of Jan. Only for parcels though. We have another one comming up in april for letters. My feeling is just raise it to what they need and get it over with. In reality it cost my company ten times as much to raise it twice a year. Every time they change the rates there are some problems that we have to go out and deal with. Or sit and talk to people on the phone because they didn't know what to do. Also the people that make postage machines have to make up new programs on their servers or send out these credit cards that have the programs on them. They have to pay people to do all that programing and making sure they make enough of the cards and send them by mail to them. Just as an example Moey write me a letter put it in an envlope and mail it to me. Now do the same thing but bring it to me. See which one cost more. DUH
It would probibly cost you $100 to bring it to me but only 42 cents to mail it. You can even mail a letter cheaper than takeing it 10 miles.

[Ritter_Schlumpfenherz]

That's an interesting topic, Moey. There were also discussions about this same problem going on lately. "Deutsche Post" wanted to deliver five days only and argued that this was the case for most European countries. For the moment, this plan didn't turn into reality, but I fear that it might change sooner or later.

[SmurfingH]

Oh no!

[cal78]

I say, let them cut saturday delivery, that makes it more fun On Monday, then i'll get three days of mail at once.

[bwalters]

I don't get that much mail. Not even Smurf mail. So I wouldn't mind it either if they cut out more than one day. But I actually would be more benifical to all to just raise the prices. I told that to one person that works at the post office he said they can only raise prices by so much and only every so often. Thats the law. Well its also a law that they have to deliver 6 days a week. Change the one that only lets you raise it by so much not how many days you deliver.