Post Office Begs to Cut Saturday Delivery as Email Further Impacts USPS Income   - 2,845 Views, 1 Comment

The Postmaster General has said that the United States Postal Service may have to cut out one day’s delivery a week as more and more people turn to the email inbox, instead of the post office, to deliver their correspondence.

According to Postmaster General John Potter “if current trends continue, we could experience a net loss of $6 billion or more this fiscal year.” Potter has asked Congress to remove the current legal requirement that the U.S. Postal Service deliver the mail six days a week.

The total volume of mail sent last year dropped by over 9 billion pieces of mail, which represented an almost 5% reduction in mail sent.

“It is possible that the cost of six-day delivery may simply prove to be unaffordable,” added Postmaster Potter. “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.”

As more and more people turn to email for the majority of their letter writing and message sending needs, it must be asked: would losing Saturday USPS delivery really make a big difference to many people?