My recent experience with USPS

[bobkrech]

Sorry, my tongue in cheek quotes did not express my sarcasm and surprise (more sarcasm) as well as I had hoped. I know they are federal and not private. In the red, due mainly to extravagant Union benefits. But I digress...it should be privatized or done away with. Not the service that Ben Franklin envisioned....

Before Congress decided to reduce the Federal Budget deficit in 2006 and required the USPS to make a $5 billion dollar annual contribution, the Post Office had a $5 Billion dollar surplus and was profitable. USPS is in a hole because congress sets the postal rates and congress has mandated that they prepay retirement benefits for employees that they have yet to hire. The USPS is the only entity, either public or private, that has to be profitable, but has no control of the fees they can charge for their services. If any other entity, either public or private, had to exist under these rules, and they would also have a deficit.

If the USPS is so inefficient and horrible, how come UPS, FedEx and other commercial package delivery services use the USPS as the provider of their hybrid residential package delivery services. It's because the USPS can do it cheaper than they can as they have daily delivery service to every address in the US.

UPS, FedEx and other commercial delivery services do not deliver to every address in the US. The USPS delivers does and does it efficiently. Privatizing the USPS is a horrible idea.

Bob

 

[mkadams001]

I don't have any more complaints about USPS than I do with any other shipping service. I think that the postal service has improved a lot over the years. After living in Hawaii for over 20 years USPS is much less expensive than UPS or Fedex on most packages. I just shipped some 22 pound packages from WA to HI and priority mail was much cheaper that the competition (with the exception of Hawaiian Air Cargo but you have to be a verified shipper). In addition, the priority mail arrived in 3 days vs the 5 days by UPS ground (yes, you can ship UPS ground to/from HI).

I think the area that needs work is the hybrid residential package delivery. It seems to be a much slower service. I think it gets hung up during the transfer of services.