Canada Post: The End of an Era

[Cyro]

Canada Post to cut door-to-door delivery in cities

Canada Post announced Wednesday it will stop delivering mail door-to-door to homes in cities, and instead use community mailboxes.

Canada Post said the one-third of Canadians who now receive mail at their door will see the service phased out over the next five years as it is rolled out neighbourhood by neighbourhood.

Source

No surprise on this one. I was involved with some of the restructuring and changes in the system a year or 2 ago. The advent of the internet and different modes of communication has lets say, turned the Corporation into somewhat of a white Elephant.

Privatization? Are you going to like going to your community Mail Box? Is it about time?

[MexiQuebecois]

Originally Posted by Cyro

Canada Post to cut door-to-door delivery in cities


Source

No surprise on this one. I was involved with some of the restructuring and changes in the system a year or 2 ago. The advent of the internet and different modes of communication has lets say, turned the Corporation into somewhat of a white Elephant.

Privatization? Are you going to like going to your community Mail Box? Is it about time?

How does a community mail box work? I've never heard of one. The reason I don't order online often, is because I'm never home and I live in an apartment building. Chasing down my package is just a pain in the ass.

[FrankieFlowerpot]

This is a community mailbox. It works like the mail room in a condo building where you have your own key.

[Cyro]

Originally Posted by MexiQuebecois

How does a community mail box work? I've never heard of one. The reason I don't order online often, is because I'm never home and I live in an apartment building. Chasing down my package is just a pain in the ass.

Here's a few image(s) to kind of get a feel for it:



thestar.com

It's more prevalent in rural settings where door to door delivery was not feasible or newer suburban developments. It's like having a Post Office Box. When it comes to larger packages, depending on your location they may just leave it at your nearest post office for Pick up and leave a notice of your package in your "Community Mail box. Apartment buildings/Condos won't change as they employ this "key" locked box already. Hence only 1/3 of homes in cities will be converted to this format. It might be alittle walk for some.

[Biff]

Originally Posted by FrankieFlowerpot

This is a community mailbox. It works like the mail room in a condo building where you have your own key.

That is a pretty bad picture of one - I have never in my life seen one look like that. Pretty pathetic looking though, what a mess.

[freeweed]

I've used a community box exclusively since 1988 - with a bunch of years in between in apartment complexes, which have essentially the same thing.

I'm shocked it's taken this long for Canada Post to get their act together and go this route for older neighbourhoods. Door-to-door is wasteful, especially considering how little real mail people get these days. I love the Supermail boxes. It holds a week's worth of mail easily, it's secure, and it has 2 parcel slots - one which is pretty damned big. The only thing I have to go pick up are really large parcels, or stuff that requires a signature or customs payment. Even in sprawly, unwalkable suburbs, you have to walk half a block at most to get your mail. Not exactly a huge burden.

I'm also waiting for CP to reduce service to every other day, or heck even once a week. With 90% of mail being junkmail anyway, there's really no reason for daily service.

[MolsonExport]

Actually it is about time. I grew up with door to door, but that was gone once I got my own place (many apts, and since 2005, houses). Since then, all my mail is through community boxes. Do I like it? Not really. Is it fair? Yes, now that there aren't two tiers of regular delivery (that is box and doors). Should have been done years ago. I imagine the union might have put up a fuss, because--let's face it--you don't need as many posties to fill the community box vs. door-to-door delivery.

I got a red sticker from Canada Post, to indicate that I do not wish to receive "junk mail" (non-addressed mail). Works quite well.

[MexiQuebecois]

Originally Posted by Cyro

Here's a few image(s) to kind of get a feel for it:



It's more prevalent in rural settings where door to door delivery was not feasible or newer suburban developments. It's like having a Post Office Box. When it comes to larger packages, depending on your location they may just leave it at your nearest post office for Pick up and leave a notice of your package in your "Community Mail box. Apartment buildings/Condos won't change as they employ this "key" locked box already. Hence only 1/3 of homes in cities will be converted to this format. It might be alittle walk for some.

Ah so it's THOSE things. Thanks for the info.

I walk through them every morning here in suburban Montreal where I work. I figured they were for that, but I just couldn't figure out how they worked in the end since they have no markings outside indicating the house it belongs to (which one is assigned to which house? that was my question).

They seem practical. I personally think it's a good idea. I've seen way too many Canada post guys struggle with ice-covered paths, aggressive dogs, etc.

[Cyro]

Canada Post's Five-point Action Plan -- Customers

• Video Link


#1 News story in Canada
Here's the start of the PR, 1,000's are going to lose jobs.
The time has come for major change.

[freeweed]

Originally Posted by MexiQuebecois

I figured they were for that, but I just couldn't figure out how they worked in the end since they have no markings outside indicating the house it belongs to (which one is assigned to which house? that was my question).

You get told which slot is yours when you move into your house. CP keeps track of this so I suppose you'd ask them if the previous owner forgot to tell you. There's a privacy angle here but also flexibility - older community boxes used to have the street address printed on the box.

Some interesting facts about CP. Interesting to see just how few people receive door-to-door these days.

[Symz]

I've heard some stories of people getting mixed mail in their box.

Personally I get delivery to my door and I'm going to miss it. I don't really care for the community boxes but I can see the reasoning and what can I do but accept it and deal with it.

[Innsertnamehere]

I was going to say that in my area, even the urban area already has a community box. Only the rural area is served by door to door delivery, with each residence having a mailbox at the bottom of the driveway. I wasn't even aware door to door delivery was still happening in urban areas.

[waterloowarrior]

They are discontinuing urban door to door delivery but keeping rural mailbox (end of driveway) delivery? Seems unfair considering urban areas already subsidize the postal rates of rural areas. I guess they must have thought it was too political considering the uproar about the safety review of rural mailboxes, and the over-representation of rural areas in Parliament.

[Boris2k7]

Originally Posted by freeweed

I've used a community box exclusively since 1988 - with a bunch of years in between in apartment complexes, which have essentially the same thing.

I'm shocked it's taken this long for Canada Post to get their act together and go this route for older neighbourhoods. Door-to-door is wasteful, especially considering how little real mail people get these days. I love the Supermail boxes. It holds a week's worth of mail easily, it's secure, and it has 2 parcel slots - one which is pretty damned big. The only thing I have to go pick up are really large parcels, or stuff that requires a signature or customs payment. Even in sprawly, unwalkable suburbs, you have to walk half a block at most to get your mail. Not exactly a huge burden.

I'm also waiting for CP to reduce service to every other day, or heck even once a week. With 90% of mail being junkmail anyway, there's really no reason for daily service.

I didn't even know that CP did door-to-door. I've never had it, only the community boxes growing up (and now have the apartment lock box).

[Daveography]

I grew up with a community mailbox, but have enjoyed door delivery for a number of years now since moving into a home in a mature neighborhood. I understand the need for this if CP wants to remain viable, and it probably won't be an enormous inconvenience since I imagine the new box will probably be situated between me and my bus stop anyway, but I will miss door service.

But, as with all change, we will kick, with will scream, we will be dragged along with it, but we will learn to adapt and eventually we will all but forget the ways things were before.

[DizzyEdge]

What's the average distance from houses to these boxes?

[MolsonExport]

^100-150 metres in my neighborhood.

[Innsertnamehere]

more where I am, but there are typically 2 "towers" at each spot, meaning 1 "community box" for every 24 houses.

[niwell]

This is pretty common in any neighbourhood built after the 90s or so isn't it? The only issue I can see is the lack of space for communal boxes in inner-city areas. Streets in my areas are already cluttered enough that I can't see much space for large areas of boxes like in the pictures above. Would probably end up being one on every street corner.

[flar]

It's too bad, I like the door to door delivery. It seems like many of the things we used to enjoy are uneconomical now.


Who will be the unlucky neighbour who gets the super mailbox planted in front of their home?