Tag: Canada

Rural mailboxes axed because of road safety: Canada Post

Posted by | Oct 29, 2007 | |

Canada Post is planning to cancel home delivery to nearly half of its customers along some rural routes in Quebec’s Eastern Townships because of road safety concerns.

The postal agency is evaluating the safety of mail routes across Canada, after three carriers died and 37 were injured while making deliveries since 2005.

Nearly 40 per cent of the routes examined in the Eastern Townships have failed the safety evaluation, because they present a hazard to carriers forced to stop on winding roads with high speed limits.

“Sometimes, because the shoulder is very narrow, [the carrier] has to stop on the road,” and that’s risky, said Canada Post spokeswoman Line Brien.

Community postboxes will replace individual deliveries on routes that failed to make the grade, Brien said.

The decision has angered many residents in the area.

Canada Post estimates it will cost about USD 500 million over the next three years to inspect all rural mailboxes in Canada.

About 843,000 Canadian residential addresses are served by rural mailboxes, Canada Post says on its website. Of the 14 million places where Canada Post delivers across the country, rural mailboxes represent about six per cent.

Read More

Canadians who click online for bargains suffer long delivery delays

Posted by | Oct 24, 2007 | |

Shoppers seeking more variety and lower prices from online retailers in the U.S. are finding it’s taking weeks for packages to be delivered to Canadian addresses.

Toronto-based writer Stephanie Pearl-McPhee said she ordered yarn from a U.S. retailer in late September, and it took nearly three weeks before it was delivered. A package of yarn shipped from the United States typically arrives in Canada within four or five working days, McPhee said.

The Canada Border Services Agency said it has recorded an uptick in mail.

“The number of online purchases arriving by mail has recently surged, in part due to the strong Canadian dollar and the commencement of the holiday season — the busiest time of the year for postal services,” Chris Williams, a CBSA spokesman, said in an e-mail.

Williams said that despite challenging circumstances, the CBSA is releasing the majority of incoming mail into the Canada Post system for delivery.

Yvonne Yoerger, a spokeswoman for the U.S. Postal Service, said service standards and delivery times remain the same on the U.S. side. But, she said, she’s personally heard of some delays at the border.

Over the past few years, changing border security regulations along with increased volume have caused some border delays, said United Parcel Service spokeswoman Cristina Falcone. She said the rise of the loonie against the U.S. dollar over the past month may be affecting shipping times.

Read More

Canada Post Introduces Online Direct Marketing Service

Posted by | Oct 18, 2007 | |

As Canadian small and medium-sized businesses strive to attract customers and adapt to the increasingly technology-based marketplace, Canada Post introduces Direct Marketing Online (www.directmarketingonline.ca). The latest addition to the company’s growing suite of solutions for business, Direct Marketing Online breaks new ground in the Canadian marketing and e-commerce industries by giving SMEs efficient and affordable online access to marketing tools once reserved for big-budget enterprises.

For the over one million businesses with fewer than 500 employees in Canada, attracting customers and standing out from the competition are essential elements for success. For smaller businesses, this is particularly important in the start-up stage, when resources and budgets are limited. An additional challenge for these organizations involves adapting to technological advancements in the marketplace, which can offer important opportunities to increase performance and output, albeit it a cost. However, recent studies indicate that SMEs are increasingly adopting Web-centric attitudes, particularly when it comes to self-serve online applications.

What’s more, Canada Post is introducing Direct Marketing Online at a time when Canadian small businesses are reporting improved performance and confidence over previous years, making it the perfect opportunity for owners to invest in marketing and technology. According to the most recent Canadian Federation of Independent Business Quarterly Business Barometer, released in September 2007, close to 44 pct of Canadian small business owners surveyed reported that their firms were doing “much better” or “somewhat better” than one year ago.

Read More

Western Union teams with Wal-Mart Canada to offer Western Union Money Transfers(R) and Quick Collect(R) services

Posted by | Oct 16, 2007 | |

The Western Union Company and Wal-Mart Canada Corp., today announced an agreement to provide fast, reliable and convenient global money transfers and Quick Collect(R) services to consumers in Canada.

With a national, chain-wide rollout scheduled for completion in early 2008, Western Union(R) services will be available effective today at select Wal-Mart stores throughout the Greater Toronto area. Wal-Mart Canada currently operates 287 stores coast to coast, serving more than 1 million Canadians daily.

“Customers turn to Wal-Mart for convenience and value – and we are constantly looking for ways to introduce new services at everyday low prices,” said Trudy Fahie, Vice President Financial Services, Wal-Mart Canada Corp. “Through this relationship with Western Union, our customers can enjoy the best overall value when it comes to choosing a money-transfer service provider.”

Through Wal-Mart Canada, Western Union will offer consumers the ability to send and receive Western Union Money Transfers(R) transactions to over 200 countries and territories. The Western Union Quick Collect(R) service enables consumers to send payments for their mortgages, credit-card bills, as well as car and consumer loans using cash or a debit card at Wal-Mart Canada stores.

Read More

DHL Express Selects DMTI Spatial to Streamline Delivery Routes with Location Intelligence

Posted by | Oct 15, 2007 | |

DMTI Spatial (DMTI) has been selected by DHL Express to provide comprehensive mapping data to optimize its facility and driver routing of its packages by moving from an address-based routing system to a 6 digit postal code boundary framework for its more than 100 locations across Canada. DHL Express Canada picks up and delivers over 300,000 packages on a daily basis. Using DMTI’s Platinum Postal Suite™, DHL can apply national postal code information with unmatched precision down to the neighborhood level ensuring accuracy and reliability in pick-up and delivery services for their customers.

Prior to purchasing the Platinum Postal Suite, DHL’s ability to accurately pinpoint addresses was limited. They had limited ability to analyze routes, make queries for more detailed information within different areas or accurately map routes by major intersection and cross streets. Using postal level demographic and geographic feature data from the Platinum Postal Suite, DHL can precisely define dispatch territories and market segment patterns providing opportunities to streamline their processes, save money and improve customer satisfaction.

“We needed a comprehensive solution that gave us the ability to analyze our routes, realize new efficiencies and provide accurate information for our operations,” explained Lenore Zara, Industrial Engineering Specialist for DHL Express. “DMTI Spatial has detailed and reliable national coverage of Canadian postal geography making them our mapping data vendor of choice.”

Read More

Advertisement

Advertisement

Advertisement

P&P Poll

Loading

What's the future of the postal USO?

Thank you for voting
You have already voted on this poll!
Please select an option!



View ResultsHide Results

Post & Parcel Magazine


Post & Parcel Magazine is our print publication, released 3 times a year. Packed with original content and thought-provoking features, Post & Parcel Magazine is a must-read for those who want the inside track on the industry.

Subscribe to the Magazine

 

Pin It on Pinterest