U.S. Post Office To Eliminate Saturday Deliveries

CBS News reported this morning that the United States Post Office has decided to end Saturday delivery of first-class and will phase out the practice by the end of this summer. As of August 1, all first-class mail—which includes pretty much all letters, bills, cards, and catalogs—will only be delivered on weekdays. Packages, express, and Priority Mail will still get dropped off on the weekend. The change would mark the end of weekend deliveries for the first time in 150 years.

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The move is designed to save a company that is collapsing under mountains of debt, soaring costs, and a steep decline in customers. The USPS has cut more than 35 precent of its workforce in recent years, closed hundreds of offices, and cut back hours at the ones that remain open. Yet, the outfit is still losing $25 million a day, and is hamstrung by federal regulations that prevent it from making any major decisions (like rate hikes) without Congressional approval.

Unfortunately, canceling Saturday delivery would not even being to fill in the company's giant financial sinkhole. Officials estimate that dropping first-class mail to five days a week will save $2 billion a year. Last year, they lost $16 billion.