The USPO and rural routes...one way to save ourselves $$
 

Ourselves being the US Government and the the tax payers.

I live in what one might consider a rural part of the county and we still get FedEx and UPS delivered by the respective companies. Sometimes these companies show up in an Enterprise rental van...don't know what that's about, but I can't imagine how these rural deliveries are really that profitable for the carriers. Not only residential deliveries, but commercial deliveries (up to a certain size and weight) would apply here. Our company operates in some far out places where UPS and FedEx comes out to deliver the one or two packages a day or week.

Effective? Not really, but what if the USPO contracted with FedEx and UPS to deliver these smaller packages on their normal routes for a cut of the fee? It would be a savings to the carriers and and profit to the USPO!

Instead of driving way out to deliver one or two packages that cost more in fuel, FedEx or UPS can simply drop off the stuff to a USPO and the federal route drivers would take it from there. Perhaps it'll add a day to the delivery time, but the savings could be passed onto the customer. And if the package must be there in short time...the USPO can manage that too!

Just thinking/typing out load as I'm waiting for a UPS package to be delivered.

Fedex and UPS show up with an Enterprise rental van when their regular van breaks down. Might save some money. 99% of the mail I get now a days is junk mailers and fliers. They should eliminate Saturday deliveries, but the Congress won't let them.

I agree with eliminating Saturday deliveries. As for junk mail....they still pay.

A week or so ago I was at my semi-rural Post Office, and there was a FedEx truck parked out back.

When I made some wise-crack comment, I was told that the USPO does work together with UPS and FedEx when it is beneficial.

Yup, and sometimes FedUp will finish a package's shipping by sending it USPS ...

Without that junk mail paying the bills USPS would really be in a hole,

they do that in Alaska...read it somewhere. We shouldn't. End Saturday delivery. For us office jocks its the only day I'm home to get mail. Eliminate the low mail day: Tuesday.

I would be totally fine with only getting mail 2-3 days a week.

It's called "Smart Post". Cheaper than ground, delivered "last mile" by USPS:

Low Weight Residential Shipping & Returns – FedEx SmartPost®

As a busines owner, I would not.
I can't stand Federal holidays because of the lack of mail service. 4th of July delayed our production schedule becasue a package containing parts waited till Tuesday to arrive. Memorial Day caused the same issue.

Eliminating Saturday delivery and many under-performing post offices is one of the recommendations in the "Moment of Truth" report issued by the National Commission on Fiscal Responsibility and Reform.

Interesting idea. I'll bet it would work.

Average postal worker makes around 48,000 in salary - and 40,000 in benefits (insurance and retirement)

Ouch!

The USPO is a self-sustaining entity, according to their literature. Glad that some things are managed properly in gub'ment. Now if they could just label all their stamps with a numerical value, and increase rates by increments of 5 cents at a time...

tip: If sending books and other media, ask for media mail rates.

We could easily get by on mail delivery only 3 times a week. Maybe less.

Good argument for tiered service. Many businesses count on the postal system and pay thousands or millions a year in postage. Let businesses and PO boxes get delivery daily, residences a few times a week.

I agree. Nobody I know uses the post office for time sensitive items.

What do you do with a business like Wolfe's, that is located in a residential area? Does Wolfe identify himself to the USPO as a business? What's to stop his neighbor from doing to same, just to get 6 day/week delivery? If the mail carrier has to visit the Wolfe's on his route 6 days/week, does that really save the USPO much money?

Why doesn't Wolfe use FedEx or UPS? Or pick up at the USPO (does he have a PO BOx for the business?)? Not picking on Wolfe, but if the service was cut back to 3-5 days/week, I think we'd all realign our schedules.