The Postal Service is responsible for maintaining an efficient mail processing and transportation network. The pace of change affecting the Postal Service has accelerated due to the ubiquity of computer-based communications, both for business and personal use. Stamped letter mail volume has been declining for a decade and will continue to decline.
These factors, along with efficiencies brought about by investment in automation, have created various ranges of excess capacity at the local level in our mail processing facilities and transportation network. To ensure that the Postal Service continues to deliver on its universal service commitment, our processing network has to be efficient, affordable, and flexible. To accomplish this, we have to successfully adjust our network locally to match our resources with a declining mail volume.
The Postal Service moved ahead in 2015 with the next phase of its plan to consolidate up to 82 of its mail processing facilities. Additional information will be posted as it becomes available.