Can We Live Without Saturday Mail?
Posted at: 03/03/2010 5:54 PM
| Updated at: 03/04/2010 1:48 PM
By: Katie Nordeen
Tuesday's announcement that the U.S. Postal Service wants to end Saturday mail has been met locally with mixed reaction.
For people such as Duluth's Patrice Critchley-Menor, cutting mail to her home on Saturdays is no big deal.
"The only thing that I would miss is the junk mail," said Critchley-Menor. "And all of the other stuff I can get in email."
But it's a different story, for businesses-owner Michael Abramson. He sells collectibles through the mail.
"It would be difficult because I send orders out six days a week and this would cut down on my business," said Abramson.
The U.S. Postal Service lost $7 billion last year and expects to lose another $240 billion over the next decade.
So what is to blame? Postal officials say it is a combination of increasing delivery costs for things like fuel, as well as a dramatic shift in consumer behavior.
To that point, many people point fingers at the internet.
"People just don't need to send as many letters and everyone is sending email," said Abramson. "It's a tough predicament that they're in right now.
Not only does the U.S. Postal Service hope to cut Saturday delivery, officials say they also want congress to close some branches, by 2011. If that doesn't happen, postal officials say customers will see mail rates rise by as much as 25-percent.
Critchley-Menor says that too, would have little impact on her and her family.
"For as little as I use it, a couple of cents here and there isn't going to be a big deal.
A spokesperson for the U.S. Post Service says they have not yet determined which branches they would consolidate. They say that would be based, on what makes sense in terms of usage, as well as location.
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