Monday, April 19, 2010

The Internet isn't everywhere. We are.

John Nichols of The Nation magazine has a keen observation on the viability of the mail.

"Americans do not often talk about the Postal Service as a crucial underpinning of the democratic infrastructure, but we should.

"At a time when 35 percent of all Americans and 50 percent of rural residents have no broadband Internet access at home, USPS is universal. It goes to extraordinary ends to assure that no citizen or community is neglected.”

Yes, the Internet is faster, but it's not really everywhere. We are.

What do you see in your town? On your route? Comment here.

8 comments:

Anonymous said...

I am in rural Northeast Ohio. My community is approx 25% Amish. No electricity, let alone internet. Also approx 50% of the seniors do not have internet service,as we do not have a reliable and cheap internet provider in the area. This means over 50% of the community is not online. Mail is very important in this area as a means of communication.

Anonymous said...

I am a Postmaster of a small office about 35 miles northeast of a very large city and over 50% of my customers do not have access to the internet. In fact 50% of my rural carriers route has no cell phone access either. that is what gets me so upset about all the surveys about stopping Saturday mail delivery. It doesn't survey Rural areas like mine and the response above. We send everything by mail and receive everything by mail. And Saturday mail is heavy in this area and we get lots of mail order medicines. They need to tald and survey these areas. We out number the other areas by far.

Anonymous said...

I have and use internet quite a bit, simply because I can send and retrieve information overnight for free. I am currently in the process of buying a home and sending/receiving paperwork via email is fast, since my credit union is nearly 2000 miles away. They can send me a document that requires my signature via emil, I print it, sign it, scan it, and send it back...all within 5 minutes. The USPS can not...nor will it ever be able to do that. There are still documents that must be sent and received in original copy...so the postal service is still an important mode of communication but diffently will not play the same vital role it did 10 years ago.

Anonymous said...

I am the postmaster of a small rural town of about 300 deliveries. We have no reliable internet service and cell phone coverage is spotty at best. We rely on the services of the USPS for medicines, mailorder packages and bill paying. For those folks needing that fax service and even photocopy service, I cannot offer them that...but I can at least send them next door to the elevator/grain storage company where they will be glad to provide those services to our customers for a fee. Wake up USPS! If I can fax a page or two, or photocopy a page or two several times a week for our rural customers, that's revenue that we cannot capture because some contract with a major photo-copy company indicates that it is not feasible to put their copy machine in my office. We are setting ourselves up to fail.

Anonymous said...

I, too, am in a small community and many of the customers don't have computers. So when I tell them they can order philatelic items on the web site it means nothing. Instead they have to drive to the closest large town that sells philatelic products. This also means that the idea of USPS making postal products & services available in grocery stores, malls, and other businesses isn't a help for small towns since we don't have any of those businesses. I realize this office will probably be closed someday (a year? 10 years?)but not all small post offices are located close enough to another town to provide service - how long do we want our rural routes & will there be that much savings if we have to pay carriers for additional mileage and time? Yes, USPS, the PRC and Congress really need to visit some of the smaller, more remote towns to get a true picture of what is needed. Too many times they think what they see in their communities is the norm for the entire county & this country is way to diverse for a "one-size-fits-all" solution.

Francis S Alaphat said...

Is Postal System look for a just an alternate but not cost effective way for delivery of message. Places where internet is not there they can mobile phones or alternate mechanism. However internet cannot replace everything but it can replace billion dollar firms like USPS with some third party small business who can volunteer to do that. If we use rural delivery as excuse, we will be replaced even USPS and Fedex can do that using their delivery changes to accomodate if a Presidential mandate happens. Looks at Six Sigma ways to understand and solve customer expectations and be a listening and Top class Supplier.

Touches and delivers the mail said...

I am a rural community, 60 miles from Des Moines and 65 miles from Omaha. Yet, cell service is spotty and internet is available for a price! Not everyone has a computer, cell phone or access to them. The mail is what connects this area of the U.S. with all the others. I think the USPS needs to look at cutting upper management and the levels of bureaucracy between those of us that touch the mail and those that touch the reports. NOT cutting service to the American public that we are charged to universally serve.

Anonymous said...

I also believe that the Postmaster General Potter should start cutting from the top. So far all he wants to do is cut our services and craft service jobs. I also heard he wants to contract out both rural and city carriers delivery routes. We did not get to be one of the most trusted Government agenties by allowing any Tom, Dick or Harry deliver the mail to our VALUED Customers. The HCR Driver here who drops our mail off is letting anyone deliver his route when he is unavailable. Even a person who has no drivers license. We report it but....His family has several other routes near by and Very good attorneys.