Canada Post reviewing roadside delivery
Canada Post is conducting a review of the country’s 843,000 roadside mailboxes to determine whether using them to deliver mail to rural areas is safe.
The cross-country review began in Stratford, P.E.I., this week. The review comes after hundreds of concerns were raised about the safety of rural mail drivers. In the past two years, there have been 34 accidents involving rural mail carriers.
Canada Post says it is still committed to rural mail delivery, but it also owes a duty of care to its drivers.
Population growth, leading to increased traffic, is making some areas that were once safe no longer safe, says Canada Post. Sufficient sightlines for a driver to react to a mail carrier pulling back on to the road are also necessary.
Changing a customer’s mode of delivery, says Canada Post, is something considered only as a last resort.
A separate review has already been conducted along a small route in Cornwall, P.E.I., prompted by a complaint from the mail carrier.
The 10 customers on that route will hear next week if delivery to the end of their driveways will continue.
Canada Post says it is still committed to rural mail delivery, but it also owes a duty of care to its drivers.
The full national review is expected to take about 2.5 years.
