Overall USPS Mail Delivery Performance Recovers from Severe Winter Storms; Peak Holiday Demand

- For the week of March 6, overall USPS service performance for delivery of First-Class Mail reached 83.7 percent

- USPS focused on continued, sustained improvement across all mail categories

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Mar 18, 2021, 17:21 ET

WASHINGTON, March 18, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- The United States Postal Service announced today strong improvements in mail delivery service performance across all categories and regions as its third-party- operated air network and mail and package processing and delivery operations continued to stabilize from a historic peak holiday season and severe February storms throughout the country.

For the week of March 6 through March 12, 2021, overall service performance recovered to pre-holiday levels with First-Class Mail reaching 83.69 percent of the Post Service's national performance standard of one-to-three-day delivery. Mailing of Marketing Materials (90.84 percent) and Periodicals (77.64 percent) rebounded to levels of service performance on par with Postal Service deliveries before last year's record-breaking peak holiday season, from mid-November through mid-January.

"This recovery in our mail delivery efforts speaks to the dedication of our Postal employees as they overcame crippling winter storms and the impact of COVID-19," said Postmaster General Louis DeJoy. "While we have much more room for improvement, I am proud of the courage and determination our USPS team have shown as they've delivered for the American people and worked toward achieving a consistent level of service excellence."

Following an unprecedented three-week impact on the air network due to the February 13-17 winter storm, which crippled regions of the country, the Postal Service focused on network stabilization to help address First Class Mail delays. The resulting air network backlog has now been cleared. The Postal Service expects continued and sustained improvement in mail delivery performance moving forward.

Additionally, the Postmaster General and the USPS Leadership Team have been working on a 10-year plan to address service performance challenges. As Postal Service data and numerous OIG reports have repeatedly shown, over the past eight years, the Postal Service has chronically failed to meet service performance targets. Details on the plan, which focuses on service excellence and financial sustainability, are forthcoming.

The Postal Service receives no tax dollars for operating expenses and relies on the sale of postage, products and services to fund its operations.

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Contact: Kim Frum
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usps.com/news

SOURCE U.S. Postal Service