JACKSON, Wyo. (AP) — A little piece of advice to those looking to ship letters or packages over the holiday season: Ship early.
“We have been in this business for 240 years now. We have a pretty good idea of people’s mailing habits,” said David Rupert, the U.S. Postal Service’s western area spokesman.
“We know people are going to be looking at the calendar over the weekend and people are going to be gripped with urgency. And that urgency is going to translate into a trip to the post office on Monday.”
Monday is the busiest mailing day of the year for the Postal Service, which estimated 612 million pieces would be handled Dec. 14.
Between Thanksgiving and New Year’s Eve the agency expects to deliver 15.5 billion pieces, including 600 million packages.
As for guaranteed shipping for Christmas delivery, First Class letters need to be postmarked by Dec. 19, Priority Parcels by Dec. 21 and Express Mail by Dec. 23.
Mr. Rupert suggested residents also use the “Click N Ship” option, which allows users to print postage from home and skip the lines at the post office by dropping off the pre-stamped letters and boxes.
As for distributing incoming mail, Mr. Rupert said that Postal Service employees do not expect any delays.
The Postal Service in Teton County not only distributes mail sent through its own service, but also handles the “last mile” of the least-expensive shipping options of other carriers. Because of that those shipping to addresses in Jackson Hole are instructed to include a post office box number on all packages, Mr. Rupert said.
Like the post office, FedEx was expecting to handle a spike in packages on Monday, as more than twice the volume of a normal day is expected for the first two Mondays of December, according to information provided by FedEx spokesman Jack Pfeiffer.
The company expects to handle 12.4 percent more packages this year, totaling about 317 million shipments.
In response to the increase, about 7,000 vehicles are being added to the FedEx Express fleet over the next two fiscal years, and 250 aircraft have been equipped with Enhanced Vision Systems, which allow pilots to better navigate through low visibility and poor weather.
Parcels shipped via FedEx Ground need to be sent by Dec. 16. To send by FedEx Express Saver the deadline is Dec. 21, and FedEx 2Day is Dec. 23.
UPS Inc. is also ramping up for holiday delivery, though neither increased volume nor snow is expected to cause delays, said UPS spokesman Matthew O’Connor.
“We have regular operations in the area, so they’re familiar with the geography and the weather,” he said.
The last day to send UPS 3 Day Select is Dec. 18, 2nd Day Air is Dec. 22 and Next Day Air is Dec. 23, for delivery by Christmas Eve day.
Mr. O’Connor suggested checking the time of transit tool on the UPS website to ensure these dates align with your specific location, as the origin and destination can add additional time to the schedule.
Time to ship, services available and prices can be found at USPS.com, FedEx.com or UPS.org.
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Information from: Jackson Hole (Wyo.) News And Guide, https://www.jhnewsandguide.com
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