One of the more controversial changes being implemented by Postmaster General Louis DeJoy as part of his 10-Year Plan is the elimination of afternoon collection trips from outlying post offices to processing centers. The “Local Transportation Optimization” initiative (most recently rebranded as “Regional Transportation Optimization”) was introduced in October 2023 in the service area of the Richmond (VA) regional processing and distribution center, the nation’s first RPDC. Advocated by the PMG as a means to minimize empty trucks, run fewer trips, and reduce transportation costs, opponents cite the impact on service, especially in the usually rural areas that LTO impacts.
To provide an objective assessment, a review was conducted by the Postal Service’s Office of Inspector General, and detailed in an audit report, Network Changes: Local Transportation, released December 18. As described by the OIG:
“The initiative is designed to reduce the number of transportation trips to and from select post offices from two or three trips per day to one trip per day. The Postal Service will no longer transport originating mail to the processing facilities the same day it is collected at the “LTO optimized” offices. Instead, the mail will remain at the affected offices until the next day for morning pickup, delaying mail being introduced into sorting operations at the processing facilities.”
Findings
“Finding #1: Service to Customers. Delaying the transportation of mail at the LTO impacted offices resulted in an overall decrease in service to the American public served by these facilities. We analyzed the service performance data of the originating First‑Class Mail for the first six LTO regions with 1,542 optimized offices implemented through March 2024. While service performance can be impacted by many variables, a decrease in service performance for both Single Piece and Presort First‑Class Mail followed the LTO implementation. Additionally, the rural population experienced a greater decline in service performance for Single Piece First‑Class Mail. As of July 2024, Presort First‑Class Mail service performance nearly returned to pre LTO levels, while Single Piece First Class Mail service performance had not recovered. … However, post-implementation shows the service performance experienced a significant decline to the lowest point of a 29.49-point reduction in service. As of July 2024, Single Piece First‑Class Mail service performance remained at 15.61 points below pre-LTO implementation levels, reflecting the impacts of the LTO initiative on service. … The LTO implementation affected 4.5 million households and businesses, and 60.6% of the total population affected by optimized offices was considered rural. … As a result of LTO, customers experienced delays in their mail delivery, and customer complaints increased at 14 of the 20 impacted offices. In some cases, local Postal Service personnel at optimized offices redirected customers to a nearby non-optimized post office to ensure on-time delivery of their mail. …”
“Finding #2: Mail Security. We judgmentally selected 26 LTO optimized offices to conduct observations and interview local Postal Service personnel between September 3, 2024, and September 5, 2024. We found the Postal Service implemented consistent safeguards to protect the security of the mail held overnight [and] personnel secured the mail overnight for the morning pickup, as communicated internally by management on October 25, 2023. …
“Finding #3: Expected Cost Savings. The Postal Service cannot effectively calculate, record, and track costs and savings related to the LTO initiative. Specifically, we found that management did not establish a process to accurately track optimized and non-optimized offices to determine the cost savings. During our audit, we requested a list of LTO optimized and non-optimized offices. Further, we initially asked on August 13, 2024, for the cost savings information. On August 22, 2024, management stated that the Finance group had not yet validated the data, even though the first LTO implementation was initiated almost 10 months prior in the Richmond, VA, region October 28, 2023. Management also stated it did not perform a cost savings analysis. Management subsequently provided the summary level transportation expenditures for the 15 LTO regions September 26, 2024. “A primary goal of the Delivering for America plan is to cut transportation costs. The Postal Service revised the estimated savings from $1 billion to $651 million but could only provide OIG with estimated transportation expenditures for the optimized offices. … Based on the information provided, we noted the Postal Service’s overall transportation expenditures increased by $7.13 million for the 15 LTO implemented regions. Based on the information provided, we noted the Postal Service’s overall transportation expenditures increased by $7.13 million for the 15 LTO implemented regions.”
Observations
For both those who support the PMG’s initiatives in pursuit of USPS self-sufficiency and those who find his goal at odds with the Postal Service’s essential and primary function to provide service, the OIG’s report, and the bare data it shows, illustrate just how severely his initiative has impacted service, especially in rural areas. Though DeJoy highhandedly dismisses this as a “price that has to be paid” to enable cost savings, the growing imbalances – between cutting cost and preserving service, and between the consequences for urban and rural customers – argue for a review of whether the initiative’s claimed benefits are worth the harm it’s causing. That DeJoy has remained stubbornly committed to LTO further reflects his dismissiveness toward “resistance”: anyone in Congress, the industry, or the public who doesn’t embrace his strategy. Moreover, while the PMG’s acolytes continue to shill the virtues of LTO – or RTO – and minimize the impact of decreased service the program imposes, they haven’t even bothered to ensure that the allegedly critical financial benefits are being realized. As the OIG noted, the USPS failed to “establish a process to accurately track optimized and non-optimized offices to determine the cost savings,” as if simply predicting savings would be all that was needed.
Meanwhile, a related Postal Service request for yet another round of service standard reductions is in process at the Postal Regulatory Commission. As the PMG has stated, “there’s an overwhelming propensity for us to move forward” with implementing those changes. Taken together, the LTO and reduced service standards gut the notion of postal service, and call out to Congress to do what Sen Josh Hawley said he would do: kill The Plan.
If you're on this page, it's likely because you have challenges to find solutions for or a question to answer. Fortunately, you've come to the right place. Click below to download our 2023 Services brochure to learn just how much we have to offer. Leave your name and email if you'd like us to stay in touch.
The brochure is a PDF that will open in a new browser window. Download, read, share, and let us know if you have questions.