A postal service employee loads packages into a mail truck.
Daily Journal File Photo
The holidays are here and so is the chaotic shopping, shipping and gift-giving. As one of the busiest times of the year, the United States Postal Service sees millions of packages and cards mailed out between Thanksgiving and New Year’s Eve.
USPS said it is “strongly positioned” to handle the expected surge ahead of the Holiday season.
“Our commitment is unwavering, and our preparation is thorough. We have been strategically planning early and leveraging significant investments in our people, infrastructure, delivery network, and technology,” said Postmaster General and CEO Louis DeJoy in a press release.
This year is the third year of the Postmaster General’s Delivering for America plan to improve the post office over the next decade. As a part of the plan, USPS has made key investments including offering a new type of ground shipping, more reliable ground transportation and increased package processing capacity. USPS is preparing for the busy season by offering Ground Advantage shipping, an “affordable” and “reliable” ground shipping with expected delivery in about two to five business days.
In addition to 150,000 employees, USPS is hiring 10,000 seasonal employees and adding 348 new package sorting machines to enhance processing capabilities.
With the busy season, the three mail delivery services — USPS, FedEx and UPS — suggest deadlines to guarantee arrival by Christmas Day.
The United States Postal Service recommends five-day shipping packages be shipped before Dec. 16 for it to arrive by Christmas. The deadline for one-day shipping is Dec. 21.
Fed-Ex recommends shipping packages before Dec. 15 for five-day delivery and Dec. 21 for one-day shipping. The United Parcel Service deadline for three-day service is Dec. 19 and Dec. 21 for Next Day Air shipments. Shipping for international mail varies depending on the destination.
“In the face of the busiest shipping season, the United States Postal Service stands ready,” DeJoy said. “We are confident in our ability to handle the holiday season surge with the same efficiency and reliability that the nation has come to expect from us throughout the year.”
Holiday Shipping Deadlines
USPS
Dec. 9 — Air/ Army Post Office/ Fleet Post Office/ Diplomatic Post Office Dec. 16 — USPS Ground Advantage & First-Class Mail (Lower 48 states, Alaska and Hawaii) & Priority Mail to Hawaii
Dec. 18 — Priority Mail (Lower 48 states & Alaska)
Dec. 20 — Priority Mail Express
View USPS price list at postcalc.usps.com/.
UPS
Dec. 19 — UPS 3 Day Select Dec. 20 — UPS 2nd Day Air services
Dec. 21 — UPS Next Day Air Services
Visit ups.com/ctc/request?loc=en_US for more details.
FedEx
Dec. 12 — FedEx Freight Economy Dec 13 — FedEx Ground Economy Dec. 19 — Express saver, three day freight Dec. 20 — two day shipping Dec. 21 — two day freight
Dec. 22 — FedEx SameDay
A more detailed list can be found at fedex.com/en-us/online/rating.html#.
