Postal Service reduces air cargo by 90% over 2 years as part of cost-cutting effort

WASHINGTON — The U.S. Postal Service has lowered its quantity of shipments by plane by 90% over two years, placing the service on the right track to save lots of $1 billion in annual transportation prices, U.S. Postmaster Basic Louis DeJoy mentioned Tuesday.

Shifting packages and envelopes from air cargo to floor transportation was a part of DeJoy’s bigger plan to enhance the Postal Service’s monetary well being.

Greater than 95% of first-class mail and 95% of first-class packages are presently shifting via the postal service’s floor transportation system, he mentioned.

It’s a part of DeJoy’s broader effort to scale back working prices, improve income from packages, and guarantee well timed deliveries, together with adjusting postage prices to mitigate inflation and increasing supply factors over the subsequent 17 months.

These efforts must proceed after the Postal Service on Tuesday reported a projected $6 billion in unplanned prices this 12 months due to inflation, sudden retirement prices and different elements, he advised the Board of Governors.

“We proceed to handle the prices inside our management, equivalent to by decreasing work hours by 6 million hours in comparison with the identical quarter final 12 months and by specializing in transportation and different working prices,” Chief Monetary Officer Joseph Corbett mentioned.

DeJoy additionally reported that the Postal Service opened its first regional distribution heart in Richmond, Virginia, and plans to open 9 extra regional facilities, 27 native processing facilities and 60 further sorting and supply facilities.

That marks the beginning of eradicating over $20 billion of deferred upkeep and making ready the Postal Service for the subsequent 30 years, he mentioned.