MailmanDave
17 Years Experience
Long Island, NY
Male, 43
I am a City Letter Carrier for the US Postal Service in NY. I've been a city letter carrier for over 17 years and it is the best job I've ever had. I mostly work 5 days per week (sometimes includes a Saturday) and often have the opportunity for overtime, which is usually voluntary. The route I deliver has about 350 homes and I walk to each of their doors to deliver the mail. Please keep in mind that I don't have authority to speak for the USPS, so all opinions are solely mine, not my employer.
I don't know anything about how a route is established and what it would take to get it changed from a riding route to a walking route. Do you know if they are city or rural letter carriers who deliver your mail? Normally if a carrier is driving in a delivery vehicle and the mailboxes are at the street they should be able to approach and leave the mailbox without having to get out of their delivery vehicle to affect delivery. If a car is parked in the way and the letter carrier can't reach the mailbox without getting out of their delivery vehicle they have the option to skip delivery and attempt it the next day hoping there will be clear access. I am not familiar with an area where some houses are riding and some are walking when they are near each other. Usually it's one or the other. For example, all of my deliveries are to a mailbox which is usually attached to an actual residence so I walk between delivery points. Other carriers stay in their delivery vehicle and put mail in mailboxes which are along a road or curb. This is also known as curbside delivery. My suggestion would be to call the post office and speak to a delivery supervisor or manager about this. I don't know if they will be of any help. Is it possible for you to move your car or even the mailbox so the letter carrier can more easily gain access to the mailbox? You shouldn't have to go without mail delivery but there are certain regulations to be followed so the letter carrier can do their job in an efficient and safe manner.
Share Answer: &caption=Jobstr.com&description=i%20live%20in%20a%20rural%20area.%20The%20house%20that%20i%20purchased%20was%20an%20established%20riding%20route.%20The%20mailman%20wont%20deliver%20my%20mail%20stating%20the%20car%20is%20in%20the%20way.%20How%20do%20I%20request%20a%20walking%20route%20when%20all%20other%20stops%20around%20my%20house%20are%20walking%20stops.&redirect_uri=http://jobstr.com/threads/show/4154-mailman-city-letter-carrier-/question/15571)
It doesn't sound reasonable to me to even have a 14-mile walking route to begin with. That is walking more than a half-marathon daily. If you had zero mail to deliver and walked 14 miles you may be able to cover the route in 4 hours if walk at 3.5 MPH. That is faster than most people walk or at least about the average walking speed. Please tell your boyfriend to do the best he can, walk safely, and that the rate he is being asked to walk at is unrealistic. I just did a quick internet search for "average walking speed" and it is 3.1 MPH. This doesn't include delivering mail or any weight added if your boyfriend is carrying a satchel of mail. USPS management is known for being unreasonable at times.
Share Answer: &caption=Jobstr.com&description=My%20boyfriend%20is%20just%20started%20working%20for%20the%20USPS%20and%20has%20only%20been%20by%20himself%20for%202%20days%20and%20they%20are%20complaining%20that%20he%20isn%27t%20going%20fast%20enough.%20It%27s%20a%2014%20mile%20walking%20round%20and%20the%20want%20him%20to%20start%20at%208.30%20and%20be%20done%20by%2012.30%20is%20this%20realistic%3F&redirect_uri=http://jobstr.com/threads/show/4154-mailman-city-letter-carrier-/question/15419)
Kim, that is generally what would happen if you came up to my postal vehicle to hand me outgoing letters. I have a small square tray which is raised on 4 sides where I put the outgoing letters and bring back to the post office for dispatch. Some use a bin or a larger tray depending on the outgoing mail volume. So in a word, nothing to worry about it and good question.
Share Answer: &caption=Jobstr.com&description=The%20mail%20man%20came%20to%20my%20house%20before%20I%20could%20put%20the%202%20letter%20I%20needed%20to%20mail%20out%20so%20I%20chased%20him%20down%20since%20I%20heard%20the%20truck.%20He%20looked%20at%20the%202%20letters%20and%20then%20dumped%20it%20into%20a%20white%20bin%20by%20his%20legs.%20Is%20this%20what%27s%20supposed%20to%20happen%3F&redirect_uri=http://jobstr.com/threads/show/4154-mailman-city-letter-carrier-/question/16231)
I see on a map you are referring to towns in MN that are about 55 miles apart. That's the mileage from Chaska, MN to Zimmerman, MN. I'd say it's approximately 2 days to get from the origin to the destination. For example, if the letter was mailed on a Tuesday before the collection deadline it should be delivered by Thursday. I hope this answers your question. It's also not a good idea to send actual cash through the mail if you can avoid it.
Share Answer: &caption=Jobstr.com&description=If%20someone%20sends%20you%20mail%20today%20from%20Chaska%20and%20Elk%20River%20what%20day%20will%20it%20show%20up%20in%20Zimmerman%3F%20Let%27s%20say%20if%20someone%20needs%20money%20for%20a%20form%20thing%20and%20they%20send%20it%20that%20day%20how%20long%20will%20it%20take%20to%20show%20up%20at%20that%20place%20they%20sent%20it%20at%3F&redirect_uri=http://jobstr.com/threads/show/4154-mailman-city-letter-carrier-/question/16498)
Birthday Party Clown
OK seriously, how DOES the clown car thing work?
Freelance Writer
How do you go about getting your first clients?
CPR Trainer
Why does the 'official' CPR method change from time to time?
Maybe for a day or so to see if anybody in the PO knows where that address is. Being that I deliver mail to the same neighborhood each day I know if a piece of mail has a valid address on it or not. It's possible if there is a replacement letter carrier delivering mail on a certain day and they can't find an address they will bring back the mail and then possibly the regular letter carrier on the route or somebody else would know where the address is. More often than not when mail has an address that can't be found (or the address doesn't even exist), we will endorse the mail as "NSN" which means "No Such Number" and it will be returned to the sender. The USPS has a national database of all valid addresses so we usually know at the PO if an address exists or not.
Share Answer: &caption=Jobstr.com&description=If%20the%20mail%20man%20doesn%27t%20find%20the%20address%20does%20he%20keep%20the%20mail%20at%20post%20office%3F&redirect_uri=http://jobstr.com/threads/show/4154-mailman-city-letter-carrier-/question/15243)
They really shouldn't be taking your mail into their unit or house or apt if you don't shared the same living space with them and they aren't responsible about giving it to you. It may not be easy but you could politely ask the landlord and girlfriend and son to maybe leave your mail in the box or slip it under your door if that's accessible or appropriate. I agree it's not good for you to need to be concerned if someone is taking your mail and giving it to you at their convenience. I know it's not the answer you'd like to hear, but a PO Box rental would solve this issue. The drawback is that it costs money and is probably less convenient than getting mail at your residence. The USPS would probably not get involved in separating out your mail and putting in to a different mail receptacle unless the unit was officially designated an apt for mail receiving purposes. I don't know how one would go about doing this or the complexity of it. We have a database of authorized addresses that we go by to deliver the mail and if there aren't multiple units designated in the same dwelling, all of the mail would normally be put together.
Share Answer: &caption=Jobstr.com&description=My%20landlord%20%26%20I%20have%20the%20same%20mailbox%20%26%20for%20some%20reason%20his%20girlfriend%20%26%20son%20continue%20to%20take%20my%20mail%20into%20the%20house%20%26%20when%20I%20ask%20about%20the%20landlord%20says%20no%20your%20mail%20isn%27t%20in%20my%20house%20%26%2010-15%20mins%20later%20he%20appears%20with%20my%20mail&redirect_uri=http://jobstr.com/threads/show/4154-mailman-city-letter-carrier-/question/16080)
I don't think the letter carrier (postman) should be commenting at all to anyone who gets mail in your box. Not that it matters, but it seems quite normal to have a bill sent to another address. Maybe you pay his XFinity bill for him. Either way that doesn't matter with regards to your question. If this comes up again, I would politely tell the manager that it's not his business who receives mail at your address. If you happen to see the letter carrier, you could mention that he shouldn't be giving out that information and as long as you, the tenant, are accepting mail for your son (or whomever) then it should be delivered accordingly by the USPS employee. I am not familiar with any circumstances that allows us to verbally confirm who gets mail at an address.
Share Answer: &caption=Jobstr.com&description=Hello.%20I%20live%20in%20a%20apartment%20community%20and%20have%20recently%20been%20asked%20by%20my%20manager%20%22why%20does%20my%20son%20get%20his%20xfinity%20bill%20at%20your%20address%20and%20why%20don%27t%20he%20have%20his%20mail%20go%20to%20his%20own%20address%3F%22%20Basically%2C%20can%20postman%20tell%20mgr.%20who%20gets%20mail%20at%20your%20box%3F&redirect_uri=http://jobstr.com/threads/show/4154-mailman-city-letter-carrier-/question/15634)
-OR-
Login with Facebook (max 20 characters - letters, numbers, and underscores only. Note that your username is private, and you have the option to choose an alias when asking questions or hosting a Q&A.)
(A valid e-mail address is required. Your e-mail will not be shared with anyone.)
(min 5 characters)
By checking this box, you acknowledge that you have read and agree to Jobstr.com’s Terms and Privacy Policy.
-OR-
Register with Facebook(Don't worry: you'll be able to choose an alias when asking questions or hosting a Q&A.)
Browse Jobs
Host a Q&A
Search
Submit Your Question
Host a Q&A
Last 7
