Lindsay Craven

Staff Writer

Yadkin County residents and business owners have complained that they believe mail service delivery has been gradually growing later from week to week since the closing of a United States Postal Service processing plant in Hickory.

But Monica Robbs, a corporate communications representative with USPS, says that there has been no decline in service since the closing of the Hickory facility.

“On behalf of the Postal Service, I want to assure customers that the move from processing mail in Hickory to Greensboro has not caused a decline in service,” Robbs said in a statement via email.

Robbs said that the USPS originally had 450 mail processing plants throughout the nation and recently had to consolidate operations at 46 of those facilities. The Hickory location was consolidated to the Greensboro location late this summer.

“Although customers may perceive a change in service, the outgoing operations for that facility had been moved prior to that time,” Robbs said in the statement. “Mail that processes there is still transported to the Associate Post Offices in the same manner they previously were, and the postal service still meets its committed times for all mail processed.”

Robbs said that the Greensboro District that absorbed the Hickory facility is responsible for processing mail for the northern half of the state and consistently ranks among the top five in the nation for service performance in most categories.

“[The Greensboro facilities’] on-time delivery scores, as measured by an independent company, top 95 percent for every category,” Robb said in the statement.

Robbs said that after July the USPS eliminated the possibility of overnight delivery for first class mail to all areas outside of those processed in the specific facility. Robbs said that the consolidation of the 46 facilities means that the USPS has managed its network to meet its service commitments adequately.

Robbs said that with the holidays quickly approaching mail customers can expect slightly slower delivery times due to the increased volume of mail being processed.

“With the increased volume of mail, customers may experience later delivery times, as carriers will have more packages along their delivery route,” Robbs said in the statement. “But, the Postal Service remains committed to providing accurate and efficient service to customers.”

Robbs said that any customer with a specific concern is welcome to contact the postmaster for their respective delivery area or contact USPS customer service at www.usps.com or call 1-800-ASK-USPS.

Reach Lindsay Craven at 679-2341 or at lcraven@heartlandpublications.com.