Posti planning to combine morning delivery of mail and newspapers in four municipalities
Finland’s Posti is planning to combine the delivery of letters, magazines and advertisements with the early-morning delivery of newspapers in four municipalities in Pirkanmaa and Satakunta.
After the change, the recipients will receive their mail in the morning instead of the afternoon.
In a statement posted on its website today (13 August), Posti said: “The delivery of letters, magazines and advertisements in the morning together with the early-morning delivery of newspapers has become necessary as the mail volume to be delivered has decreased significantly. There is simply not enough mail for two separate delivery networks.”
Yrjö Eskola, Senior Vice President, Postal Services at Posti, commented: “In the 2000s, the number of letters has reduced by over 60% because of digital communications, and the coronavirus crisis is accelerating the decline of printed mail even further. The volume of letter mail delivered by Posti decreased a record-breaking 24% in April-June from the corresponding period in 2019.”
According to Eskola, a regional delivery solution where letters, magazines and advertisements are delivered in connection with the early-morning delivery of newspapers may improve the cost-efficiency of delivery operations. Posti believes that maintaining two separate delivery networks will become unprofitable in upcoming years as the delivery volumes will decrease significantly.
Eskola explained: “This plan is about moving the letters and magazine delivered in the daytime to be delivered in the early-morning delivery together with newspapers. By combining the deliveries, we will ensure that our deliverers have enough mail to carry despite the drastically declined volumes of printed mail. This will keep the delivery cost of individual items at an affordable level. This is essential for both media corporations and magazine and newspaper subscribers.”
The change is being planned for four municipalities in the Pirkanmaa and Satakunta area. The affected municipalities and their postal codes are Virrat (34800), Urjala (31700, 31720, 31760 and 31830), Merikarvia (29900) and Mänttä-Vilppula (35700, 35820 and 35990).
No decisions have been made to carry out similar changes in other Posti early-morning delivery areas. The majority of Finland does not have an early-morning delivery network for newspapers so mail is delivered only with the daytime delivery.
Early-morning deliverers in Pirkanmaa and Satakunta have delivered letters and other items in early-morning delivery previously, when they were deliverers of the Alma Media subsidiary Alma Manu Oy. At the start of this year, Posti assumed responsibility for newspaper delivery in the area following an acquisition. In Finland, there are more than a dozen delivery companies that deliver letter mail in the morning together with the newspapers.
Posti believes that the move will have public support, as according to its research: “In all, 66% of citizens support the simultaneous delivery of newspapers and day mail in the morning.”
Eskola argued that the simultaneous delivery of mail and newspapers will also help to meet emissions reduction targets.
“Posti’s goal is to become emission-free by 2030,” said Eskola. “Due to the drastic decline in delivery volumes, it is not sensible for a deliverer to come by a mail recipient’s door twice a day. Delivering newspapers and day mail together would significantly decrease driven kilometers and emissions.”
The proposed changes would not apply to parcel delivery as parcels would still be delivered to pick-up points or Home Parcels directly to the recipient’s home as separate deliveries.