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.
Boo, I have never heard of this happening where somebody can reverse delivery on an item that has tracking. My inkling would be that this is not allowed even if it were possible. The only way you would get the letter back is if it was refused at the destination or the address was invalid. You could call 800-ASK-USPS or go to your local Post Office but I don't think that you will get a different answer. Upon further review I went to ehow.com where there is a column written with the title "How to Retrieve a Letter Already Mailed Through the Post Office". The column mentions a form called an application for recall of mail and the steps to fill it out. Also if you go to USPS.com and lookup Package Intercept that may help you as well. You have asked a good question as it got me to do a little research to learn that this service does exist for a fee. The fee looks to be 11.50 per piece. Thanks for writing.
Share Answer: &caption=Jobstr.com&description=Hi%2C%20i%20sent%20a%20letter%20today%20with%20tracking%20on%20it.%20Can%20i%20get%20it%20reversed%20delivered%20back%20to%20me%3F&redirect_uri=http://jobstr.com/threads/show/4154-mailman-city-letter-carrier-/question/12980)
I don't know Ke. I once wore a pedometer to record my steps but have since forgotten the results. I know that my vehicle odometer to/from the PO plus delivering the route is about 9 miles per day. On part of my route I have dismount deliveries where you deliver a few houses at a time, return to the truck, move it forward to another set of houses and deliver those and so on. Other parts are "park and loop" deliveries which is where most of the walking occurs wearing a sometimes heavy mail satchel. I don't know about other routes, but I'm guessing I walk maybe 5 miles total. There are probably is a way to estimate by taking the number of deliveries I have and multiply by the distance I think there is between each house. Very rough estimate of 350 houses times 50 ft equals 3.31 miles. I hope this helps, but keep in mind that the route size, delivery method, and layout vary greatly.
Share Answer: &caption=Jobstr.com&description=How%20many%20miles%20does%20the%20average%20mailman%20walk&redirect_uri=http://jobstr.com/threads/show/4154-mailman-city-letter-carrier-/question/13769)
I'm sorry but it's unlikely that you would be able to get your paycheck before regular mail delivery on Monday. It is likely that your post office closed and may not have anybody there until early on Monday AM. Even on Monday AM, it's not likely that your mail will be available (or that you'd find anybody willing or allowed to help). I don't know where your post office is so I can't speak to the specifics of your situation. I am just speaking in generalities of what I think would be the situation at most post offices. My question to you is: How do you know your pay check is at the post office? Most post offices deliver whatever mail has arrived on the same day that it arrives. What I mean is that mail that is processed overnight at a regional sorting facility arrives at our local post office by apprx 730AM and then is all sent out for delivery the same day it arrives. Do you have a PO Box where the paycheck would be and your local post office has restricted hours for access (i.e. not a 24 hour lobby).
Share Answer: &caption=Jobstr.com&description=I%20know%20my%20paycheck%20is%20at%20post%20office%2C%20I%20need%20for%20an%20emergency%2C%20%20it%27s%20Saturday%20night%20at%206%3A10%20pm.%20Is%20there%20any%20possible%20way%20to%20get%20it%20before%20monday%3F&redirect_uri=http://jobstr.com/threads/show/4154-mailman-city-letter-carrier-/question/11830)
Hello Joy. The area where you took the photo is probably serviced by a rural carrier or HCR (highway contract routr). These positions are different than the one I am employed as even though we all serve the same function. It makes sense to me that the barrel would be used for packages because I don't think carriers are required to deliver mail to a house that is more than a certain amt of feet from the road. The barrel is a convenient way for the customer to receive packages without having to drive to a post office which is many mlies away and has limited hours. It would also protect the package from damage in inclement weather. I can't confirm this is what the barrel is for.
Share Answer: &caption=Jobstr.com&description=I%20have%20a%20photograph%20of%20mailboxes%20in%20a%20remote%20part%20of%20South%20Dakota.%20%20There%20is%20a%20large%20barrel%20next%20to%20the%20mailboxes.%20%20Is%20it%20used%20for%20packages%3F&redirect_uri=http://jobstr.com/threads/show/4154-mailman-city-letter-carrier-/question/13110)
Certified Nurse Aide
Is it true that STD rates in nursing homes are going through the roof?
Hotel Front Desk Agent
What's the MOST trashed you've ever found a hotel room?
Nail Technician
How sanitary are the pedicure basins really?
Regarding your question Joseph, I don't known what the official rule is on this. If I were the letter carrier who was collecting the mail from the blue collection box and you approached me with appropriate ID and the letter was easy to find, I'd return it to you. I can imagine some other carriers not being as accommodating to your request either because they don't want to help you or because we may not technically be allowed to. It's also not always so easy to find the person collecting the mail unless you are watching the mailbox for awhile because letter carrier doesn't always come at the time printed on the collection box schedule label. The time printed on the label is the earliest time of the collection but it could be hours before the mail is actually collected.
Share Answer: &caption=Jobstr.com&description=If%20i%20was%20to%20put%20my%20mail%20in%20the%20collectors%20box%20and%20lets%20just%20say%20i%20needed%20it%20back%20cause%20whatever%20reason.%20And%20the%20envolope%20has%20my%20name%20on%20it%2C%20could%20i%20have%20it%20returned%20if%20i%20go%20to%20the%20mailmen%20when%20he%20is%20collecting%20the%20mail%20and%20show%20valid%20U.S.%20form%20of%20i.d&redirect_uri=http://jobstr.com/threads/show/4154-mailman-city-letter-carrier-/question/14409)
I think you will likely receive the item but there may be a delay of several days. The letter will first likely go to the PO that the ZIP corresponds to. The clerks at that office would then need to send the letter back to a central mail facility where it might be manually corrected (the proper ZIP being researched and put on the envelope) and then continue to the intended destination. I'm not sure I have the procedure correct. It's also possible the letter could be returned to the sender with the endorsement of "No Such Street in this ZIP code" but I've never seen that before.
Share Answer: &caption=Jobstr.com&description=If%20someone%20mailed%20me%20something%20with%20the%20correct%20address%2C%20city%2C%20and%20state%2C%20but%20wrong%20zip%20code.%20What%20will%20most%20likely%20happen%3F%3F&redirect_uri=http://jobstr.com/threads/show/4154-mailman-city-letter-carrier-/question/15285)
I don't know the answer to this question. In the PO where I work, the supervisors manage when bulk mail is distributed for delivery and we will deliver it on that day unless there is some extenuating circumstance why we can't. I notice that most bulk mail that comes to our PO is usually delivered within 3-4 days, often earlier. 10 days seems like an awfully long time for bulk mail to be sitting around no matter the time sensitivity or not. When your mailing is given to a BMEU (Bulk Mail Entry Unit), do they have any straight answer either? I agree that this is poor service if you can't get any range of time or reason why it's taking so long to be delivered. I do acknowledge that bulk mailings do get put to the bottom of the list as far as priority of which class of mail to deliver, but there isn't a huge amount of First-Class Mail and Periodical mail to go through that a bulk mailing should take so long. I'm just speaking from the perspective of where I work and can't really comment on the operations of another post office.
Share Answer: &caption=Jobstr.com&description=How%20long%20does%20a%20postal%20carrier%20have%20to%20deliver%20bulk%20mail%3FWe%20mail%20a%20time%20sensitive%20local%20newspaper.%20It%20is%20taking%2010%20days%20before%20being%20delivered.there%20is%20no%20direct%20answer%20from%20local%20postmaster%20or%20carrier.%20How%20many%20days%20to%20deliver%20bulk%20mail%3F&redirect_uri=http://jobstr.com/threads/show/4154-mailman-city-letter-carrier-/question/13497)
-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
