Louis DeJoy: we will continue to fulfill our goal to make a peak season day like any other day — just more
With two weeks remaining before Christmas Day (Wednesday, Dec. 25), the U. S. Postal Service today reports exceptional service performance during the peak holiday rush and expects continued success throughout the season, including the busiest week of the year — the week just before Christmas.
Through the substantial progress the Postal Service has made under its 10-year Delivering for America plan — a $40 billion investment aimed at modernizing and reinvigorating the organization — USPS has met the challenge of the year’s peak surge in mail and package volume with expanded processing capabilities, optimized transportation strategies, enhanced operational precision and the dedication of more than 640,000 employees nationwide.
The continued transformation of the Postal Service has led to significant cost savings, increased service reliability and enhanced service performance. Currently, 98 percent of the nation’s population receives their mail and packages in an average of 2.6 days.
“We are committed to delivering exceptional service throughout the peak holiday season and beyond,” said Postmaster General and CEO Louis DeJoy. “Thanks in large part to the investments and strategies identified in our Delivering for America plan, I have complete confidence that we will continue to fulfill our goal to make a peak season day like any other day — just more.”
As the nation’s delivery provider of choice, the Postal Service has also implemented several accelerated processes including prioritized morning parcel delivery, enhanced scanning technology, and extended retail and pick-up delivery hours at popular Post Office locations, while continuing to offer the lowest postage rates in the industrialized world.
Key accomplishments ahead of peak holiday surge
In addition to the implementation of Delivering for America strategies and initiatives aimed at building operational excellence, financial stability, and a sustainable future all year long, the Postal Service has leveraged key investments to ensure dependable, timely service ahead of the peak holiday season.
- Best-in-class operations: The Postal Service has committed $17.3 billion to the redesign and improvement of its processing and delivery networks. It has added 83 new sorting and delivery centres across the country that serve as centralized hubs that expand the geographic reach and speed of mail and package delivery.
- Enhanced processing capabilities: The Postal Service has deployed 506 new package conveyor systems since 2021 — 158 of which were added since last year’s peak season. This dramatically boosted its package processing capacity from 47 million to 77 million packages per day.
- Fully optimised transportation network: The crucial realignment of its transportation infrastructure has allowed USPS to shift volumes from costly air transport to more efficient surface routes. The vast majority — more than 95 percent — of First-Class Mail and packages are moved via ground transportation, resulting in fewer empty trucks, reduced costs and faster delivery times.
- Modern, transformed retail network: The Postal Service is revitalizing its network of 32,000 Post Offices and has equipped more than 50 sorting and delivery centres with the latest technology to optimize the customer experience and expedite transactions. These modern retail locations feature rapid parcel drop-off stations, smart parcel lockers and multi-functional self-service kiosks to meet customer mailing and package needs.
- Bolstered delivery fleet: This holiday season will also mark the initial release of the brand-new next generation delivery vehicles, which will be on select roads and routes this winter. Additionally this holiday season, there will be more than 27,000 new USPS vehicles on the road with more than 500 being battery electric vehicles.
- Stable and empowered workforce: The Postal Service added 7,500 seasonal employees to help its workforce with the expected increase in shipping volume during the holidays.
