Priority Mail: A friend sent a small package to me from Casper, WY on Dec. 17 via Priority Mail. Just arrived in Washington this afternoon. Does anyone really wonder why the US Mail...

ricardo7 Loc: Washington, DC - Santiago, Chile

A friend sent a small package to me from Casper, WY on Dec. 17 via Priority Mail.
Just arrived in Washington this afternoon.
Does anyone really wonder why the US Mail can't compete with the private sector?

drmike99 Loc: Fairfield Connecticut

Don't know but my son sent my gift UPS guaranteed 3 day from CA on the 19th and it arrived today. So I guess UPS can't compete either.

Shellback Loc: North of Cheyenne Bottoms Wetlands - Kansas

Ah, but they do compete - here in the middle of the country, I have found that the priority mail is cheaper than UPS - by quite a bit... and talking with others who ship small packages, they are starting to use the postal service more - the brown box prices are going through the roof - I still have an account with them but hardly use them anymore - if I need to ship a larger item or have something delivered "Right Now" - then I'll use either UPS or FedEx...

Another thing I have noticed, receiving products ordered online, they come via the postal service - it all depends on the size and weight...

This article has the details on USPS vs UPS vs FedEx: Which Shipping Carrier Is Best?

And this time of year - all bets are off...

pmorin Loc: Huntington Beach, Palm Springs

Shellback wrote:

Ah, but they do compete - here in the middle of th... (show quote)

I have shipped several times now to different locations and I use Priority Mail all the time. Always gets there in good shape. Plus when I’m receiving a package the postman doesn’t throw the boxes at the door and run like Fedex and UPS. My postman always rings my doorbell and actually waits for me to answer. When having an item delivered to me I ask the shipper to use USPS if possible as they will hold mail for me for weeks at a time if needed.

TriX Loc: Raleigh, NC

At my house USPS is great. Same letter carrier for years, and he REALLY treats us well. UPS on the other hand puts packages on the street 500’ from our house, and Fedex varies depending on the driver. In the end, it all comes down to the individual driver, but while they used to be similar, USPS priority mail is generally half the price of the other two. You know who is also really good? Amazon Prime has their own delivery service here, and it’s always on-time, including Saturday or Sunday and always at our back door under the car port.

drmike99 Loc: Fairfield Connecticut

TriX wrote:

At my house USPS is great. Same letter carrier for... (show quote)

I’m generally ok with priority mail and it is less expensive. But recently I bought two items on eBay for my Pentax 6x7, one from Japan and one from Taiwan. Both required signatures. And both times our postman DID NOT attempt delivery, did not request signature, simply left the card in the mailbox and both times I had to go to the post office the next day to get my items. I lodged a complaint the second day.

tramsey Loc: Texas

I've wondered the same thing but I can't remember a time when Amazon missed when they said 2nd day mailing. I use Amazon a lot and they haven't missed yet and they use the same carriers. I wonder how they do it? I would sure like to know.

The Watcher

Here's how screwed up the US Mail is. I'm currently living in Battle Mountain, Nevada; it's in the northern part of the state along I-80. If I want to mail a letter to someone in this town, that letter will be sent to Salt Lake City, three hundred and twelve miles away and then returned to Battle Mountain.

Here’s another one. Recently I did some drone photography for some people in Spring Creek, Nevada; it’s about seventy five miles from me. I mailed the photos out on a Thursday and the receipt said they would arrive on Saturday. They made a stop in Elko, Nevada and then on to Salt Lake City and then back to Elko and then out to Spring Creek which is about ten miles away. The photos arrived on Tuesday.

Here’s one more. I bought a used book on Amazon; it was mailed from Payson, Utah and send to Denver, Colorado (482 road miles in the other direction) and then on to me (832 road miles). The book was in transit for seven days.

But then there’s this one. I won an auction on Ebay and the item was shipped priority mail from Maine and it arrived in three days

DAN Phillips Loc: Graysville, GA

Based on past experiences, I hope the Postal Sytem goes Belly Up TODAY!!

Architect1776 Loc: In my mind

ricardo7 wrote:

A friend sent a small package to me from Casper, WY on Dec. 17 via Priority Mail.
Just arrived in Washington this afternoon.
Does anyone really wonder why the US Mail can't compete with the private sector?

Did it occur to you that on Dec. 17th the system is overwhelmed by people like you who wait to mail packages?
Plan better and perhaps you will see that the USPS will meet this time schedule.

SonyBug

I bought myself a Christmas present on Dec 26th. It was a Apple iWatch V.4. So, they advertised that I would get one day shipping if in stock. Guess it was not in stock as it shipped that day, from Shanghai China. So, Apple has cut the distribution chain and ships from maker to customer. But it still is scheduled to be here this afternoon. Not bad from China!

Architect1776 Loc: In my mind

nikonbug wrote:

I bought myself a Christmas present on Dec 26th. It was a Apple iWatch V.4. So, they advertised that I would get one day shipping if in stock. Guess it was not in stock as it shipped that day, from Shanghai China. So, Apple has cut the distribution chain and ships from maker to customer. But it still is scheduled to be here this afternoon. Not bad from China!

The season rush is over remember.

TriX Loc: Raleigh, NC

DAN Phillips wrote:

Based on past experiences, I hope the Postal Sytem goes Belly Up TODAY!!

Then based on current UPS and Fedex pricing (have you compared that to USPS priority mail recently?), it will cost you roughly 2x to ship items, if that’s something you ever do. I’m also wondering how you will receive mail such as bank statements, certified communications, social security and Medicare information, medical and insurance documents, IRS, local and state tax transactions, jury summons, drivers license and auto registration info - I could go on. Now the argument may be that all these services could be handled electronically and many are, but we are nowhere near implementing that for all these and many other services, and that leaves out the vulnerabilities of the internet system. Even though we are moving to electronic B2B and personal communication and documents, there are actually still a few things in most people’s mailboxes of importance in addition to junk mail. In the future, mail may become obsolete, but we’re not there yet. And on a personal note, I’d miss Christmas cards 😢. Better wait a little while longer before the USPS goes belly-up.

jerryc41 Loc: Catskill Mts of NY

I have no complaints with the PO system. When you consider what they do and what they charge, it's a bargain. I've gotten and received overnight delivery of Priority mail, and packages are delivered to my door. When you figure they deliver about 660 million pieces of mail a year, they do okay.

Architect1776 Loc: In my mind

jerryc41 wrote:

I have no complaints with the PO system. When you consider what they do and what they charge, it's a bargain. I've gotten and received overnight delivery of Priority mail, and packages are delivered to my door. When you figure they deliver about 660 million pieces of mail a year, they do okay.