Background The Postal Service deployed a major change to operations within the Richmond, VA, area on October 28, 2023, when it implemented its Local Transportation Optimization initiative. The initiative is designed to reduce the overall number of transportation trips to and from select Post Offices and increase the amount of mail transported on each trip….
Background The U.S. Postal Service is working to leverage technology to improve visibility and tracking of mail and packages in near real time for the Postal Service, its customers, and mailers. As it moves through the surface transportation network, mail and packages are assigned to a container equipped with barcodes. Surface Visibility provides real-time scanning…
We performed a self-initiated audit at the Curseen-Morris Processing and Distribution Center (P&DC) and three delivery units serviced by the P&DC during the week of February 5, 2023. The delivery units included the Brookland Station, Lammond Riggs Station, and Ward Place Annex located in Washington, DC. We issued individual reports for the three delivery units and the…
Background Our objective for this alert was to determine facility opening procedures and mail conditions at the South Houston Local Processing Center. Each year, increased mail volume during the Postal Service’s peak mailing season — Thanksgiving through New Year’s Eve1 — significantly strains the Postal Service’s processing and distribution network. The Postal Service opens peak…
Background The U.S. Postal Service is redesigning its processing network with the goal of creating a best-in-class mail and package processing network as part of its 10-year strategic Delivering for America plan. The Postal Service plans to create a modernized network based around Regional Processing and Distribution Centers (RP&DC), local processing centers, and sorting and…
Background As part of the Delivering for America 10-year plan, the U.S. Postal Service is making significant investments in Regional Processing and Distribution Centers (RP&DCs) to modernize its network. The goal of this initiative is to standardize and modernize mail and package processing and improve service reliability and cost efficiency across the nation. The Postal…
Background The U.S. Postal Service provides customers across the nation mail service six days a week as required by law. In December 2022, Winter Storm Elliott arrived in Western New York, and within minutes, winds went from 10 to 70 miles per hour and brought about 36 inches of snow over four days. During a…
Background The U.S. Postal Service and its contracted trucking companies and drivers play a key role in transporting and maintaining the safety and security of the mail. The Postal Service has approximately 4,600 trucking contracts (highway contract routes and freight auction services) with associated costs of $5.2 billion. The Postal Service’s ability to effectively manage…
