Austrian Post closes 310 offices
Austrian postal company Oesterreichische Post (Post AG) plans to close 310 post offices by the middle of 2005 after negotiations with the country’s provincial governments, , it was reported on May 11, 2005.
Originally Post AG wanted to close 357 of its 1,640 post offices. In 47 cases the company reconsidered and decided to follow their commercial development until 2006/2007.
Most affected by the closures is Lower Austria, where 83 offices will be shut and 10 were salvaged. In Upper Austria 73 offices will be closed and six saved. In Styria Post will close 33 of the 39 originally planned. In Carinthia it will close 34 post offices instead of the planned 40, in Tyrol 33 offices will be closed of the planned 37 planned and in Vienna seven post offices will be closed from the 11 originally planned. In Salzburg the closures will affect 19 offices instead of 23, in Burgenland 16 will be shut, down from 20 and in Vorarlberg 12 will be shut from the planned 15.
In two thirds of the locations, affected by the closures customers will be served by retail partners or postal service offices. A local retailer or council will be then responsible for the lmajor part of the postal services.
In Carinthia every closed postal office will be replaced by retail partners or post service offices. Upper Austria and Tyrol have problems with finding substitutes for the closed postal branches.
Nearly 200 postal partner and service offices were opened in Austria. In 111 communities postmen will deliver mail.
With the closures Post AG hopes to save 22.7 mln euro ($29.2 mln) a year by 2007.
Adapted by AII Data Processing for APA
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