The House Oversight and Government Reform Committee recently approved plans for new residential developments to use cluster box units or curbside delivery (including mailboxes at ends of a driveway) instead of through “mail slots” at the door. The plan is included in pending House legislation which favors phasing out home delivery over the next five years to help USPS save money. Earlier this year, USPS looked at requiring centralized delivery in new home developments rather than leaving the decision to new home developers. USPS has actually been focusing on curbside and cluster box delivery in such neighborhoods since the 1970s. Currently, around 1 in 3 mail customers have door delivery. The new system would allow seniors (who receive Social Security and prescriptions) to obtain waivers to keep door delivery. Additionally, postal customers could keep door to door delivery, but they would have to pay a premium for it. “I’m all for centralized delivery. It costs twice as much to deliver door to door as it does to the curb and almost three times as much as to cluster boxes,” says National League of Postmasters President Mark Strong. “Phasing out door to door delivery would save more money than consolidation of all mail processing plants, five-day delivery and POStPlan combined.”
Source: Ben Nelms, TheCitizen.com and AP Niagara Gazette