OPINION: Postal paradigm shift - the future of the USO

[POSTMAN]

https://www.parcelandpostaltechnologyin ... e-uso.html

John Tuohy
Founder & CEO OOHPod Self Service Smart Lockers for Parcel Management, Public and Private Use.

Postal paradigm shift – the future of the USO - Parcel and Postal Technology International

With a history dating back almost 400 years to the reign of King Charles I, Royal Mail has been a mainstay in British history. In recent years, the postal operator has been besieged by problems, from financial losses to staff strikes, but it has remained a part of daily life in the UK.

However, we find ourselves at a point where Royal Mail and its international counterparts’ position in society is under threat. That is due to a realization – belated, in my opinion – that the universal service obligation (USO) to which the world’s national postal operators are tied is no longer fit for purpose.

As the postal industry’s regulator in the UK, Ofcom, has acknowledged, the USO ‘risks becoming unsustainable’ in the face of steeply declining mail volumes and intense commercial competition.

In outlining proposals for what should happen to prevent that occurring, Ofcom has entered very sensitive waters – after all, Royal Mail is part of the very ‘fabric of society’. Therein, I believe, lies the problem.

Cumbersome operations
Bold decisions need to be made to take account of the radical changes we have seen in delivery services in the last 20 years alone. Vast, agile and hugely profitable corporations have sprung up, driven principally by the demand from online shoppers for ever greater convenience.

Despite being entrusted with handling a much larger number of parcels itself, many national postal operators like Royal Mail have been wedded to costly and cumbersome obligations which require them to process and deliver letters six days a week, both to major conurbations and remote locations.

Were that commitment to remain unaltered, the need to offer a standard price delivery service to 32 million addresses across the UK would be a considerable albatross around its neck.

In the case of Royal Mail, Ofcom has calculated that cutting deliveries by only one day a week would generate an annual net saving of up to £200m (US$255m). Halve the current schedule and the cost benefit could be more than three times as much.

Such a prospect is and has been unacceptable to some people for some time. Royal Mail’s previous attempts to reduce the USO burden have been met with stiff resistance. During a parliamentary debate last January, Labour MP Rachel Hopkins suggested that a reduction would be “hugely detrimental to the scope and quality of the UK’s universal postal service”.

I strongly disagree and – what’s more – I think that with an issue as tricky but structurally and economically important as Royal Mail’s future, any decision as to what comes next should be based on common sense and not pure sentiment, as understandable as the attachment to the service is.

Embrace change
Other major countries have managed to adapt their USOs without too much trouble. Among the most progressive are the Nordic posts. Norway has adopted an alternate day service, with mail delivered on Monday, Wednesday and Friday one week and Tuesday and Thursday the following week. Denmark – one of Posten’s partners in PostNord – has gone even further, scrapping its USO from the beginning of this year.

France, Germany and Australia, to name but a few, have also made substantial changes to their USOs, so why can’t the UK?

If those wedded to the idea of the USO refuse to budge, I think that Royal Mail should be compensated for its future obligations. Again, other countries, such as Denmark, France and Italy, have done so.

Even as Ofcom opened a 10-week consultation on its proposals, it emphasized that “downgrading delivery targets is not an option for reform” . I don’t think that they need be. While letter post has stagnated, the technology of logistics has thrived.

By making the sort of substantial savings possible by being released from the USO as it has stood in the UK since the Postal Services Act 2011, Royal Mail can still capitalize on some of the new infrastructure which has developed in recent years to maintain – and even enhance – its service.

One comprehensive study published last year reckoned that the UK had some 60,000 PUDO points and self-service locker terminals – an impressive tally and one that is growing all the time.

To avail itself of that existing network would provide Royal Mail a ready-made final-mile option with both economic and environmental benefits.

Consolidating mail and other types of goods, including groceries and medicines, that are already being delivered to people’s homes means that even the needs of those with limited mobility can be addressed.

I think that a 50% reduction in weekly deliveries in one go would be too much of a culture shock. I don’t underestimate or relish the challenge in negotiating any prospective shift within a heavily unionized industry.

Even so, change is essential and happening elsewhere. If Royal Mail is not allowed to change its USO terms, it may not have much of a future to speak of.

[kazardaimenu]

Would a more relaxed USO make the managers more relaxed? I doubt it. Mail would be piled high.

[Mr Rush]

Among the most progressive are the Nordic posts. Norway has adopted an alternate day service, with mail delivered on Monday, Wednesday and Friday one week and Tuesday and Thursday the following week. Denmark – one of Posten’s partners in PostNord – has gone even further, scrapping its USO from the beginning of this year.

You use that word, but I do not think it means what you think it means.

[postslippete]

https://www.parcelandpostaltechnologyin ... e-uso.html

John Tuohy
Founder & CEO OOHPod Self Service Smart Lockers for Parcel Management, Public and Private Use.

Postal paradigm shift – the future of the USO - Parcel and Postal Technology International

With a history dating back almost 400 years to the reign of King Charles I, Royal Mail has been a mainstay in British history. In recent years, the postal operator has been besieged by problems, from financial losses to staff strikes, but it has remained a part of daily life in the UK.

Actually, it's older than that. The foundations of a national postal service were laid down by Henry VIII in 1516 which dates it back to over 500 years old. At least get the FACTS right!!

And if we are handling a much larger number of parcels that would suggest that we bring in more revenue and therefore profit which could be used to maintain the Universal Service instead of continually running it down to make even more profit in the short term.

[enskied]

Did we not have post and parcel post once upon a day?
Royal mail are making a fortune on first class letters and no mistakes. As it stands they are no different to mailsort.

[derekm]

Basically all it’s about is to give shareholders more money. Any savings will not be put back into the business or give staff a decent pay rise without strings it will go to directors & shareholders.