People could travel a round-trip of 11 miles to collect unde

[TrueBlueTerrier]

People could travel a round-trip of 11 miles to collect undelivered mail

http://www.thisislocallondon.co.uk/news ... ered_mail/" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

THE CLOSURE of a mail delivery office in Swanscombe could mean people travelling a round-trip of 11 miles to collect undelivered mail.

From January 30, Royal Mail will relocate its office in Swanscombe High Street to West Hill in Dartford under a shakeup to save money and modernize its business.

Residents living in Swanscombe, Greenhithe, Stone and Ebbsfleet will all be affected by the changes.

Postal staff from Swanscombe will be forced to travel to Dartford to collect the mail, but Royal Mail says it will reimburse them for any extra mileage incurred by the changes.

According to the postal company, the relocation is in part due to a decline in mail volumes, with 18 million fewer letters posted daily in the UK compared to five years ago.

It says an increase in electronic communication has led to the decline.

Anthony Gadd of Mounts Road, Greenhithe says the relocation will cause a lot of inconvenience for people.

The 74-year-old said: “We’re pensioners and it’s very time consuming to get to Dartford.

“At least we can get to the one in Swanscombe.

“But it’s not only us, it’s people who have wheelchairs, people who are disabled.

“If people can’t get to the door in time, they miss out on receiving their package.

“It’s a massive inconvenience.”

Nursery worker Kathy Cee of Church Road, Swanscombe says the move will be difficult for people who work.

The 50-year-old said: “I work so I would only be able to pick up my parcel at the weekend.

“It’s inconvenient having to go on a Saturday morning.

“Sometimes I have things for work that are urgent that can’t wait, they’re time sensitive.

“It’s a real pain.”

Her neighbor, Sarah Woods agreed.

The 29-year-old added: “It’s not ideal if you don’t drive or can't easily get to the new office.

“You could get caught up in lots of traffic trying to get to Dartford.”

Ebbsfleet to the new delivery office in West Hill, Dartford is an 11 mile round trip, taking 32 minutes.

Swanscombe is a 9.8 mile round trip, taking 28 minutes.

Greenhithe is a 7.8 mile round trip, taking 26 minutes.

Stone is a 6.4 mile round trip, taking 22 minutes.


Royal Mail response

ROYAL Mail says it will continue to make every effort to deliver mail to customers first time in the areas affected.

A spokeswoman added: “If this is not possible because they are not at home, customers can arrange a redelivery free of charge on a convenient day.

“Customers can also have the item redelivered to an alternative address within the same postcode area if that is more suitable.”

For more information, go to royalmail.com

Dartford's delivery office will be open Monday to Friday from 7am until 7.30pm, with it staying open until 8pm on Wednesday, and from 7am until 2pm on Saturdays.

Delivery Rules

:: For security reasons, special delivery and Royal Mail tracked items cannot be redelivered to another address

:: Royal Mail holds items for 18 days before returning them to their sender - any redelivery date must be within 18 days of the first delivery attempt

:: A total of 48 working hours notice is required for a redelivery. If the item is needed before then, it will have to be collected from the delivery office

:: For signed items, anyone at the address can sign for it, but identification is needed if the item is collected from the delivery office

[Bahia Feliz]

Nursery worker Kathy Cee of Church Road, Swanscombe says the move will be difficult for people who work

“I work so I would only be able to pick up my parcel at the weekend.

“It’s inconvenient having to go on a Saturday morning"

The 29-year-old added: “It’s not ideal if you don’t drive or can't easily get to the new office



She can have any items redelivered on the Saturday morning,Please tell her someone thankyou.

[DGP1]

Redelivery is available and provided it's not a special it can go to another address plus there's always the option of getting it delivered to your workplace (I have several that do that now) so there are always options other than an 11 mile round trip (which is less than all of mine have to make to pick up packets).

[arnold cheshire]

Redelivery is available and provided it's not a special it can go to another address plus there's always the option of getting it delivered to your workplace (I have several that do that now) so there are always options other than an 11 mile round trip (which is less than all of mine have to make to pick up packets).

you are obviously on royal mails side over this issue think of the members who have to travel to work a lot further then they are used to 11 miles a day on fuel isnt good at the end of the week its disgusting how we get treated

[fishtank]

Everything is moving away from people's doorsteps.
Once upon a time it was a five minute walk to the shops,every village had a police station etc,etc.
The town i live in doesn't even have a bank any more...just a couple of cash machines.
I personally don't like it but it's supposedly progress.
If you don't fight to keep these things...you lose them and people generally don't want to fight.

[DGP1]

Redelivery is available and provided it's not a special it can go to another address plus there's always the option of getting it delivered to your workplace (I have several that do that now) so there are always options other than an 11 mile round trip (which is less than all of mine have to make to pick up packets).

you are obviously on royal mails side over this issue think of the members who have to travel to work a lot further then they are used to 11 miles a day on fuel isnt good at the end of the week its disgusting how we get treated

TBH many places where lucky to have small offices and only delivering to a small geographical area for a long time, RM will be centralising many DOs into large ones (I fear that mine will also be moved but that will just mean less work for me to do as I'll have to travel a lot further just to start my round).