In an advisory opinion last September, the commission agreed that the package volume being designated for longer delivery times had consistently failed to meet goals, and it said USPS does seem to deliver better service when relying on its own network.īut the commission also questioned the USPS' predictions for the new standards' impact, noting that its models used data from October 2020 - a unique time in its history, given the stresses brought on by the coronavirus pandemic. The service's regulator, the Postal Regulatory Commission, has repeatedly said DeJoy's plans could have an outsize effect on USPS customers, when compared to its bottom line. By boosting that usage, it says it can provide more reliable service that's not affected by changing conditions and costs of air transport. The USPS says it wants to get more out of its ground network, saying the average truck runs at only 40% capacity. And last summer, news emerged that DeJoy, a prominent donor to Republican politicians, was under federal investigation for possible campaign finance violations during his tenure leading New Breed Logistics. DeJoy has been criticized for his cost-cutting plans. The USPS has been the focus of heated debates over its mission and goals for the past two years, after Postmaster General Louis DeJoy was named to the position during former President Donald Trump's term in office. It's the latest policy shift at the Postal Service First-class mail, which had risen to nearly 90% on-time delivery after standards were eased last fall, fell to 86.7% in this year's first quarter. In the first quarter of 2022, the average time to deliver a piece of mail or a package was 2.7 days, according to the USPS. Packages were initially intended to be part of that same shift, but the agency delayed that part of the change until this spring. The longer delivery standards for packages come months after the USPS slowed delivery standards for first-class letters last fall. "Modifying service standards would allow for additional transport time and increased efficiencies across the networks." "The Postal Service is continually looking for ways to improve performance and provide customers with consistent, cost-effective, and reliable service," USPS spokesperson Kim Frum told NPR. A small number - 4% - will move to a shorter standard of two days instead of three. But the new rules won't affect about 64% of first-class packages, the USPS says. ![]() Some packages will see delayed deliveries, particularly if they travel long distances. Right now, more than 20% of those packages have a two-day delivery standard, and nearly 80% have a three-day standard. The changes that take effect on May 1 deal only with first-class packages, which mainly include small and lightweight packages such as prescription drug orders. Donate Today Heart Here's what the changes will look like
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