Canada Post community mailbox program halt too late for many Ottawans
'The timing couldn't have been worse,' says resident who lost door-to-door service Monday
Ottawa addresses scheduled to lose door-to-door mail delivery in October will still go through the transition to community mailboxes despite Monday's announcement by Canada Post that the controversial program has been put on hold.
People whose postal codes begin with K2G, K2E, K2C, K1S, K1Z — an estimated 34,000 homes that receive deliveries from the Merivale and Parkdale depots — transitioned to community mailboxes Monday, said Ian Anderson, president of the Ottawa chapter of the Canadian Union of Postal Workers.
Canada Post confirmed those Ottawa addresses are not part of the roughly 460,000 addresses across the country included in the program suspension.
"In neighbourhoods where the 10-month internal and community conversion process is complete, customers will collect mail and parcels at their community mailbox. This includes customers set to begin receiving their mail and parcels in their boxes in October. We remain focused on maintaining reliable postal service to all Canadians without disruption," Canada Post said in a news release.
Kanata addresses with the postal codes K2K, K2L and K2M, as well as Barrhaven addresses with the K2J postal code, began using the community mailboxes earlier this year.
Program should have been halted sooner, union says
Prime minister-designate Justin Trudeau promised during the federal election campaign that a Liberal government would stop the Conservative plan to end door-to-door mail delivery.
The Canadian Union of Postal Workers said Canada Post should have halted the community mailbox program sooner after the election.
"It's unfortunate that it took them until today to do it because tens of thousands of people in communities across this country lost their door-to-door delivery today," said Mike Palecek, the union's national president.
The union is calling on the incoming Liberal government to restore door-to-door service for everyone who's been transitioned to community mailboxes, to review Canada Post's mandate and to explore new revenue streams.
The Liberal Party has so far declined to comment on the Canada Post announcement.
'Timing couldn't have been worse'
"The timing couldn't have been worse," said Gary Miller, who started receiving mail in a community mailbox for the first time on Monday.
"Since it just started today ... for the life of me I can't see what they're going to do here. Are they going to tear down these boxes that they just installed all around the neighbourhood? Are they going to get rid of them? ... I guess we have to wait and see what develops."
Miller said while he'd be glad to see the mailboxes go, "it makes no logical sense" to tear them down after spending the money to have them installed.
Peter McClintock agreed.
"I just got my first letter today in my mailbox, so I guess I'm stuck with it," he said. "Whether it's fair or not, how much money have they invested in this already?"
Outgoing Transport Minister Lisa Raitt, whose portfolio includes Canada Post, said it's an "arm's-length Crown corporation" that makes decisions independent of government.