Message to U.S. Postal workers on Bainbridge Island: We feel your pain.
The Post Office has come under a fair amount of criticism in recent weeks, and by fair, we mean a lot.
Social media and message boards have been filled with complaints by irritated islanders, many angry over delivery delays, late-arriving mail and mail going to the wrong address.
As a business that depends greatly on the ability of our delivery folks to get your newspaper to your door, we can sympathize with our island’s mail carriers.
It’s seldom easy sledding to end each week with a no-miss record of stunning success, where each paper is delivered on time to the right home or business. Many times, forces beyond the carrier’s control — traffic, weather, mechanic issues, mix-ups on the distribution end — can conspire to keep that copy of the Review landing safe and sound (and dry) on someone’s driveway or doorstep.
There are other pitfalls, too, that prevent the paper from arriving; a vacation hold not lifted in time, a lapsed subscription, or, for newsstand customers, a popular issue that’s been gobbled up like the last turkey leg on Thanksgiving.
Like mail delivery, most folks don’t take into account all the times the newspaper was there on time, as expected.
So we feel for you, Post Office. Some residents have been so bothered by the late mail deliveries they’ve contacted their elected officials for help, including Congressman Derek Kilmer.
There are reasons, of course, why mail carriers have been a bit late in recent weeks. A big one has been the changeover in carriers, and we can tell you it takes a bit of time to recruit new ones and get them familiarized with Bainbridge’s difficult routes.
The holiday season is here, of course, and the Post Office is going to be struggling with the great weight of holiday mail. So let’s give them a bit of a break to get things sorted out.
And if the mail comes late at night, well, didn’t we always know that “nor gloom of night stays these couriers from the swift completion of their appointed rounds”?
