Revised summer retail counter hours at 54 Chicago District stations and branches will take effect on Saturday, July 25, and remain in effect through Friday, September 25. Mail delivery will be unaffected by the change.

According to District Manager/Postmaster Gloria Tyson, adjusting retail hours during the summer will allow supervisors greater flexibility for scheduling staffing to adjust to fluctuating lobby traffic, which will increase operational efficiency and reduce operating costs.

“The ongoing decline in mail volume means fewer customers in our lobby,” said Tyson. “It makes business sense for us to adjust staffing to the declining workload.”

Tyson adds there are many ways to purchase mailing and shipping services from the U.S. Postal Service without making a trip to the Post Office.

“Alternate access to postal products and services has never been greater,” Tyson says. “Customers can buy stamps at selected supermarkets, drug stores and automated teller machines. They can buy stamps, mail packages, or ship items by Express Mail or Priority Mail at our one of our seven contract stations in the Logan Square, Lincoln Park, Lakeview, Clearing and Chicago Lawn neighborhoods. Best of all, they can go to our website, usps.com, to buy stamps or send packages with Click-N-Ship. They can even request to have their letter carrier pick up their package the next business day at no charge.”

Regular retail counter hours at the Cardiss Collins Postal Store, 433 W. Harrison St. (7:30 am – midnight, seven days a week) will remain in effect throughout the summer. A complete list of locations with revised summer hours is attached.

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Please Note: For broadcast quality video and audio, photo stills and other media resources, visit the USPS Newsroom at www.usps.com/communications/newsroom/welcome.htm.

An independent federal agency, the U.S. Postal Service is the only delivery service that reaches every address in the nation, 149 million residences, businesses and Post Office Boxes, six days a week. It has 34,000 retail locations and relies on the sale of postage, products and services, not tax dollars, to pay for operating expenses. Named the Most Trusted Government Agency five consecutive years by the Ponemon Institute, the Postal Service has annual revenue of $75 billion and delivers nearly half the world’s mail.