SALT LAKE CITY — An avalanche of more than 2 million cards and packages are expected at Utah Post Offices on Monday, Dec. 14 – the busiest mailing day of the year. Fully-staffed Post Offices will greet customers, and postal managers will be in lobbies to answer questions and provide assistance.
Those looking to avoid the crowds, and save some time and money, are encouraged to ship from home for the holidays at usps.com where prices are lower than Post Offices, and customers can print postage-paid shipping labels and request a free pickup of their packages by their letter carrier. The busiest mailing day also is expected to be the Postal Service’s busiest day online with more than 7 million customers predicted to visit usps.com.
Self-Service Kiosks, located in 31 postal lobbies across the Wasatch Front, allow customers to purchase stamps, weigh and mail cards and packages 24/7, using their debit or credit cards. The kiosks can be found in most Salt Lake metro area Post Offices, two Ogden Post Offices – Ben Lomond and Mount Ogden; and all Post Offices in American Fork, Cedar City, Layton, Lehi, Logan, Orem, Pleasant Grove, Provo, Roy, and St. George.
In addition to the nearly 200 Post Offices in Utah there are also more than 30 full-service Contract Post Offices. To find the nearest postal location, call 1-800-ASK-USPS (1-800-275-8777) or go to usps.com and click on “Find USPS Locations.”
Utah postal officials’ project to deliver a record 5.4 million packages this holiday season, a 20 percent increase compared to last holiday season, and nearly twice the 10.5 percent increase expected nationwide. A total of nearly 600 million holiday packages are expected nationwide.
According to USPS District Manager Darrell Stoke, the strategy for handling the holiday surge includes delivering packages seven days a week through Christmas in larger cities, and early morning deliveries in some locations.
“It’s all about providing outstanding service to our customers and keeping our package network fluid,” said Stoke, who added the USPS has been investing in its infrastructure including high-speed package-sorting equipment, and scanning technology to provide real-time visibility of packages.
In time for the holidays, the Postal Service will offer real-time delivery notifications – meaning customers who sign up for alerts at myusps.com will receive text and/or email notification within a few minutes of the delivery scan for select packages.
“The Postal Service ships more packages to more places than anyone else,” said Stoke. “During the holidays, we’re raising the bar with enhanced tracking, real-time delivery notifications, and Sunday delivery providing excellent service and reliability that only Santa can compete with.”
On Dec. 14, the busiest mailing day of the year, the Postal Service projects to process 612 million pieces of mail nationwide.
Monday, Dec. 21 is expected to be the busiest delivery day of the year for packages with more than 30 million packages being delivered.
Between Thanksgiving and New Year’s Eve, the USPS will handle 15.5 billion pieces of mail – 541 million a day – which will be delivered to more than 150 million U.S. addresses with the help of nearly 200,000 vehicles. Approximately 30,000 seasonal workers have been hired to process and deliver holiday cards and packages – 500 in Utah. USPS will increase air cargo lift of mail by 29 percent compared to non-holiday periods.
“It’s a busy time for us, but it’s also a very rewarding time for our employees, who enjoy going the extra mile for their customers to ensure all those holiday cards and packages are delivered on-time — this is ‘our season’,” said Stoke.
Below are recommended mail-by dates to ensure those cards and packages reach their destination before Christmas.
International Mail-by Dates
- Dec. 8-17 for Priority Mail Express International Service – depending on destination
- Dec. 19 for Global Express Guaranteed Service
Military Mail-by Dates
- Dec. 17 for Priority Mail Express Military Service
U.S. Mail-by Dates:
- Dec. 15 for Standard Post
- Dec. 19 for First-Class Mail
- Dec. 21 for Priority Mail
- Dec. 23 for Priority Mail Express
Customer are encouraged to go online to usps.com/holiday for information on holiday shipping dates, print shipping labels, schedule a Free Package Pickup, download the USPS mobile app, and more.
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Please Note: For broadcast quality video and audio, photo stills and other media resources, visit the USPS Newsroom at about.usps.com/news/welcome.htm. A complete list of the holiday shipping deadlines can be found at https://about.usps.com/holidaynews.
For reporters interested in speaking with a regional Postal Service public relations professional, please go to about.usps.com/news/media-contacts/usps-local-media-contacts.pdf. Follow us on Twitter (twitter.com/usps), Instagram (instagram.com/uspostalservice), Pinterest (pinterest.com/uspsstamps), LinkedIn (linkedin.com/company/usps), subscribe to our channel on YouTube (youtube.com/usps), like us on Facebook (facebook.com/usps) and view our Postal Postsblog (uspsblog.com).
For more information about the Postal Service, visit usps.com and usps.com/postalfacts.
