The End Of Canada Post?

without getting too political and commenting on unions & reducing service days... it's about time they took steps to maintain the health of the organization. same should be done for subsidized public transit and other programs that operate at a loss. let those who use pay. if it costs a dollar to send a letter then charge a dollar.

is it the beginning of the end?

NO, just maybe another step towards it, the 'end' started the day the first email was sent. (packages will still need to get sent)

@jello_g - Our neighbourhood has been on communal boxes since they were built. There are a couple of extra large boxes for parcels and the mailman just leaves the key in your box and you put it back in the slot once you get your parcel. For ones that require signature he still comes to the door and hand delivers them (or leaves us a notice to pick it up at the post office if we're not home of course).

No, I don't think 'the end is nigh'. They did mention parcel delivery is growing rapidly due to rapidly increasing online shopping. Not enough yet to offset the losses on letters but that's what these changes are intended to address. Maybe, in the next 20 years, we'll see a massive change in the structure of our cities where many of us give up our cars, shop online, and summon an electric robot car when we need to go somewhere?

I live in a town of 10,000 and this is what we use. I hate it when it's icy or the lock freezes up. It took awhile to get used to after moving 9 yrs ago from Edmonton. I had door to door delivery and didn't have to contend with the elements to get my mail. It will be hard on people with mobility issues, as not everyone knows their neighbours. I have had the same neighbour for 9 yrs. the neighbour on my other side changes every few months. I also know when I lived in apts, I never knew my neighbour as there was frequent changeover. I wonder if they will still deliver to apts? Yet people living in the country or sm towns have to go to their local post office to pick up mail. I did this growing up, so it could be possible; only city dwellers had door to door service.

I've certainly used the boxes before and I'm fine with that, even if I'd rather a postman, but I recognize Canada Post has to do something. I know a number of seniors and disabled people that will have a very difficult time with this though, especially in the winter and living in a city that does a very poor job at clearing streets and sidewalks (they only plow something like 40% of the sidewalks at all, and not very often at that). Many people move to urban areas because of the postal delivery. As I said, I'm okay with this move, but they did have other options to try, as others have mentioned.

Also, that is one heck of a price increase in a country that is already challenged for its ability to support mail based businesses.

Uh, Hydro One did that too.

The way things are going we'll soon be slogging through the unploughed snow on the sidewalk - assuming there are sidewalks - to dig out the community mailbox in the dark because there's no street lighting.

Canada's national newspaper speaks out

P.S. they're against it

http://www.theglobeandmail.com/glob...cle15942224/

The price increase is dramatic but in my case, it might result in maybe 2-3 dollars more for stamps per year. I rarely mail anything. However, the costs to charities that still do mass mailings could be critical.

What I find interesting is the issue of home delivery. Imagine the debate in 1000's of communities across the country as to where exactly these new boxes will be located. Literally, no one is going to be happy to have a piece of their property taken for a mail station complete with traffic and garbage. Does Canada post have to apply for use of that piece of land from municipalities? Most cities have the right to the first few feet of the homeowners property but does that extend to CP? And even if they can legally expropriate the land, I doubt it will stop people from pushing back. I won't even get into the aspect of a unilateral workplace change without union support.

I also do not believe Canada Posts assertion that only 1/3 of Canadians currently have home delivery. As I recall, community boxes were phased in and basically only in new housing developments. When they were first implemented in the 80's most people who had home delivery, kept home delivery. It was only new houses that didn't get the service. For CP's numbers to be accurate, we'd have to believe that Canada's population exploded in the past 30 years and/or a lot of people moved into new housing developments and destroyed their pre mid 80's houses. Basically, 2/3 of the country would have to be new houses. I don't buy that or trust fuzzy statistics provided by the party who needs them to support their position.

Canada Post won't go away anytime soon but by their own numbers, they plan to shrink by 6-8,000 workers albeit over 10 years.

My grandma can't afford propane as it is, and now paying her bills through the mail as she does will just squeeze her. Why doesn't Canada Post start a seniors' program? Seems they are the most loyal people to Canada Post.