Editing United States Postal Service (section)

=== Sorting and delivery process ===
[[File:USPS mail flow through national infrastructure.svg|thumb|upright=1.3|Mail flow through national infrastructure, as of 2005]]

Processing of standard sized envelopes and cards is highly automated, including reading of handwritten addresses. Mail from individual customers and public USPS mailboxes is collected by letter carriers into plastic tubs, which are taken to one of approximately 251 '''Processing and Distribution Centers''' ('''P&DCs''') across the United States. Each P&DC sorts mail for a given region (typically with a radius of around {{convert|200|mi}}) and connects with the national network for interregional mail.<ref name="bard"> Direct Marketing Direct Mail. Allbusiness.com. Retrieved July 8, 2011 from {{cite web|title=Equipment Scheduling at Mail Processing and Distribution Centers|url=http://www.allbusiness.com/marketing/direct-marketing-direct-mail/316648-1.html |access-date=April 4, 2009 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080311080413/http://www.allbusiness.com/marketing/direct-marketing-direct-mail/316648-1.html |archive-date=March 11, 2008}}</ref>

Since the late 20th century, the USPS has been reducing [[Point-to-point transit|point-to-point links]] in favor of a [[spoke-hub distribution paradigm]], with sorting work tightly concentrated at the hubs. During the 2010s, the USPS consolidated mail sorting for large regions into the P&DCs on the basis that most mail is addressed to faraway destinations,<ref name="Wade">{{cite news|last1=Wade|first1=Madison|title=Changes announced for Redding mail processing center|url=http://www.krcrtv.com/news/changes-announced-for-redding-mail-processing-center_20160513173556232/11098437|access-date=January 19, 2017|work=KRCR News Channel ABC 7|publisher=Bonten Media Group|location=Redding|date=April 9, 2015|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170131193446/http://www.krcrtv.com/news/changes-announced-for-redding-mail-processing-center_20160513173556232/11098437|archive-date=January 31, 2017|url-status=live}}</ref> but for cities at the edge of a P&DC's region, this means all locally addressed mail must travel long distances (that is, to and from the P&DC for sorting) to reach nearby addresses.<ref name="Benda">{{cite news|last1=Benda|first1=David|title=Mail sorting facility will close; move will affect 90 jobs in Redding|url=http://archive.redding.com/news/mail-sorting-facility-to-close-move-will-affect-90-jobs-in-redding-ep-375253774-354500461.html|access-date=January 19, 2017|work=Redding Record-Searchlight|date=February 23, 2012|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170131195039/http://archive.redding.com/news/mail-sorting-facility-to-close-move-will-affect-90-jobs-in-redding-ep-375253774-354500461.html|archive-date=January 31, 2017|url-status=live}}</ref>

At the P&DC, mail is emptied into hampers which are automatically dumped into a Dual Pass Rough Cull System (DPRCS). As mail travels through the DPRCS, large items, such as packages and mail bundles, are removed from the stream. As the remaining mail enters the first machine for processing standard mail, the [[Advanced Facer-Canceler System]] (AFCS), pieces that passed through the DPRCS but do not conform to physical dimensions for processing in the AFCS (e.g., large envelopes or overstuffed standard envelopes) are automatically diverted from the stream. Mail removed from the DPRCS and AFCS is manually processed or sent to parcel sorting machines.

In contrast to the previous system, which canceled and postmarked the upper right corner of the envelope, thereby missing any stamps which were inappropriately placed, the AFCS locates [[Indicia (philately)|indicia]] (stamp or metered postage mark) regardless of the orientation of the mailpiece as it enters the machine, and cancels it by applying a [[postmark]]. Detection of indicia enables the AFCS to determine the orientation of each mailpiece and sort it accordingly. The AFCS rotates and flips over mailpieces as needed, so all mail is sorted right-side up and faced in the same direction in each output bin.

Mail is sorted by the AFCS into three categories: mail already affixed with a [[bar code]] and addressed (such as business reply envelopes and cards); mail with machine printed (typed) addresses; and mail with handwritten addresses.

Mail with typed addresses goes to a [[Multiline Optical Character Reader]] (MLOCR) which reads the ZIP Code and address information and prints the appropriate bar code onto the envelope (formerly POSTNET, later Intelligent Mail). Mail with handwritten addresses and illegible typed addresses is diverted from the mailstream to the [[Remote Bar Coding System]] (RBCS). Images of such mailpieces are transmitted through RBCS to the [[Remote Encoding Center]], where humans ([[data entry clerk]]s) read each image and type in the most likely address. Each mailpiece held for RBCS processing is sprayed with an ID Tag, a [[fluorescent]] bar code. When address data comes back from the Remote Encoding Center, RBCS uses the ID Tag bar code to identify the corresponding mailpiece and prints the appropriate bar code, then returns the mailpiece to the mailstream.

Processed mail is imaged by the [[Mail Isolation Control and Tracking]] (MICT) system to allow easier tracking of hazardous substances. Images are taken at more than 200 mail processing centers, and are destroyed after being retained for 30 days.<ref name="WaPo_confirm">{{cite news |first=Andrew |last=Miga |url=https://news.yahoo.com/ap-interview-postal-takes-photos-mail-keeps-images-074323981.html |publisher=[[Yahoo! News]] |title=AP Interview: Postal Service takes photos of all mail, keeps images for up to a month |date=August 2, 2013 |access-date=April 18, 2014 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140419020929/http://news.yahoo.com/ap-interview-postal-takes-photos-mail-keeps-images-074323981.html |archive-date=April 19, 2014 |url-status=live}}</ref>

If a customer has filed a change of address card and his or her mail is detected in the mailstream with the old address, the mailpiece is sent to a machine that automatically connects to a Computerized Forwarding System database to determine the new address. If this address is found, the machine will paste a label over the former address with the current address and the appropriate bar code. The mail is returned to the mailstream to be forwarded to the addressee's new location.

Mail with addresses that cannot be read and bar coded by any of the foregoing automated systems is separated for human intervention. Local postal workers can read the address and manually codes and sorts mail according to the ZIP Code on the article. If the address still cannot be read, mail is either returned to the sender (First-Class Mail with a valid return address) or is sent to the Mail Recovery Center in Atlanta, Georgia (formerly known as the [[dead letter office]]). At this office, the mail is opened to try to find an address to forward to. If an address is found, the contents are resealed and delivered. Otherwise, the items are held for 90 days in case of inquiry by the customer; if they are not claimed, they are either destroyed or auctioned off at the monthly Postal Service Unclaimed Parcel auction to raise money for the service.

Once the mail is bar coded, it is automatically sorted by a [[delivery bar code sorter|Delivery Bar Code Sorter]] (DBCS) that reads the bar code, identifies the destination of the mailpiece, and sends it to an appropriate tray that corresponds to the next segment of its journey.

There are necessarily two P&DCs for every domestic mailpiece which correspond to the regions in which the sender and recipient are located. The USPS calls these, respectively, the origin and destination P&DCs.<ref>See, e.g., [https://www.ecfr.gov/current/title-39/chapter-I/subchapter-C/part-121 39 CFR 121.1 et seq.]</ref> Mail for which they are the same (because the senders are located in the same region as the recipients) is either trucked to the appropriate local post office, or kept in the building for carrier routes served directly from the P&DC itself. Out-of-region mail is trucked to the closest airport and then flown, usually as baggage on commercial airlines, to the airport nearest the destination station. At the destination P&DC, mail is again read by a DBCS which sorts items to local post offices; this includes grouping mailpieces by individual letter-carrier route.

At the carrier route level, 95% of letters arrive pre-sorted;<ref name="bard" /> the remaining mail must be sorted by hand. In 2009, the Post Office was working to increase the percentage of automatically sorted mail, including a pilot program to sort "flats".<ref>USPS.com. Retrieved July 8, 2011 from {{cite web|url=http://www.usps.com/strategicplanning/cs08/chpt4_pg46.htm|title=Comprehensive Statement on Postal Operations 2008|access-date=March 31, 2009|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090508211032/https://www.usps.com/strategicplanning/cs08/chpt4_pg46.htm|archive-date=May 8, 2009}}</ref>

FedEx provides air transport service to USPS for Priority and Express Mail. Priority Mail and Express Mail are transported from Priority Mail processing centers to the closest FedEx-served airport, where they are handed off to FedEx. FedEx then flies them to the destination airport and hands them back to USPS for transport to the local post office and delivery.

After consolidating sorting work into the P&DCs, the USPS in August 2022 initiated a pilot program to consolidate delivery work into '''Sorting and Delivery Centers (S&DCs)'''. As of 2022, the USPS was still running "delivery units" out of most of its post offices, meaning that most carrier routes were based at post offices and there were dozens of delivery units in each [[Metropolitan statistical area|metropolitan area]]. The USPS planned to merge many delivery units in each metropolitan area into S&DCs, which implied that many letter carriers would have to endure longer commutes to S&DCs and drive longer delivery routes, while many post offices would be reduced to retail stores with no back-end mail processing capability on site. However, the USPS hoped to save money on the trucking fleet moving mail between its facilities.<ref name="Katz2">{{cite news |last1=Katz |first1=Eric |title=USPS Lists Hundreds of Post Offices and Other Facilities Where It Will Consolidate Operations |url=https://www.govexec.com/management/2022/08/usps-lists-hundreds-post-offices-facilities-consolidate-operations/376385/ |access-date=March 26, 2023 |work=Government Executive |date=August 26, 2022}}</ref> A 2023 audit by the USPS inspector general found that the facilities selected to serve as the initial S&DCs were operating smoothly and functioning as expected, but criticized the USPS for immediately consolidating workers into the S&DCs before they had been upgraded with adequate amenities like restrooms, break rooms, and locker rooms appropriately sized for such large numbers of employees.<ref name="Katz">{{cite news |last1=Katz |first1=Eric |title=New, consolidated USPS facilities are operating smoothly, but not yet delivering on improved working conditions |url=https://www.govexec.com/management/2023/09/new-consolidated-usps-facilities-are-operating-smoothly-not-yet-delivering-promise-improved-working-conditions/390307/ |access-date=December 16, 2023 |work=Government Executive |date=September 14, 2023}}</ref>

{{anchor|United States post office building}}

==== Types of postal facilities ====
{{main|List of United States post offices}}
[[File:OldPostOfficeTomahWI.JPG|thumb|Historic main post office in [[Tomah, Wisconsin]]]]
[[File:LongPointStationHouston.JPG|thumb|A typical post office station in the [[Spring Branch, Houston|Spring Branch]] area of [[Houston]], Texas]]<!--Used to show the new "generic" post offices-->
[[File:Galveston Federal Building 2009.jpg|thumb|A combined [[Galveston United States Post Office and Courthouse|Post Office, Customs House, and Federal Court House]] in [[Galveston, Texas]]]]<!--Photo used to show example of post offices that are tenants in other governmental buildings-->
[[File:Halibut Cove Post Office.jpg|thumb|Floating post office, [[Halibut Cove, Alaska]]]]
[[File:Wheeler-springs-smallest-post-office-in-america.png|thumb|right|220px|[[Wheeler Springs, California|Wheeler Springs, CA]] was home to the smallest post office in the U.S.]]
Although its retail postal facilities are called post offices in regular speech, the USPS recognizes several types of postal facilities, including the following:
* A '''main post office''' (formerly known as a '''general post office''') is the primary postal facility in a community.
* A '''station''' or '''post office station''' is a postal facility that is not the main post office, but that is within the corporate limits of the community.
* A '''branch''' or '''post office branch''' is a postal facility that is not the main post office and that is outside the corporate limits of the community.
* A '''classified unit''' is a station or branch operated by USPS employees in a facility owned or leased by the USPS.
* A '''contract postal unit''' (or '''CPU''') is a station or branch operated by a contractor, typically in a store or other place of business.<ref name="glossary" />
* A '''community post office''' (or '''CPO''') is a contract postal unit providing services in a small community in which other types of post office facilities have been discontinued.
* An '''approved shipper''' is an independent shipping business licensed to use certain USPS branding and signage, but which does not receive any financial compensation from USPS and may opt to charge higher rates for postage. Approved Shippers may also accept packages for other carriers such as UPS or FedEx.<ref>{{cite web |title=Approved Postal Provider Programs |url=https://about.usps.com/suppliers/becoming/approved-postal-provider-programs.htm |publisher=USPS |access-date=August 10, 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220308142338/https://about.usps.com/suppliers/becoming/approved-postal-provider-programs.htm |archive-date=March 8, 2022 |url-status=live}}</ref>
* A '''finance unit''' is a station or branch that provides window services and accepts mail, but does not provide delivery.
* A '''village post office''' ('''VPO''') is an entity such as a local business or government center that provides postal services through a contract with the USPS. First introduced in 2011 as an integral part of the USPS plan to close low volume post offices, village post offices will fill the role of the post office within a ZIP Code.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://about.usps.com/news/electronic-press-kits/expandedaccess/assets/pdf/vpo-fact-sheet-110726.pdf |title=USPS VPO Fact Sheet |publisher=usps.com |date=July 26, 2011 |access-date=November 17, 2011 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20111005130006/http://about.usps.com/news/electronic-press-kits/expandedaccess/assets/pdf/vpo-fact-sheet-110726.pdf |archive-date=October 5, 2011}}</ref>
* A '''processing and distribution center''' ('''P&DC''', or '''processing and distribution facility''', formerly known as a '''General Mail Facility''') is a central mail facility that processes and dispatches incoming and outgoing mail to and from a designated service area (251 nationwide).<ref name="bard" /><ref>{{cite web|url=http://about.usps.com/news/electronic-press-kits/our-future-network/processing_facility_types.pdf|title=Fact Sheet: Processing Facilities|publisher=United States Postal Service|website=USPS News Kit: Our Future Network|type=PDF|access-date=June 27, 2013|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120515062651/http://about.usps.com/news/electronic-press-kits/our-future-network/processing_facility_types.pdf|archive-date=May 15, 2012|url-status=live}}</ref>
* A '''[[sectional center facility]]''' ('''SCF''') is a P&DC for a designated geographical area defined by one or more three-digit ZIP Code prefixes.
* An '''international service center''' ('''ISC''') is an international mail processing facility. There are only five such USPS facilities in the continental United States, located in Chicago, New York, Miami, Los Angeles and San Francisco.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.usps.com/communications/newsroom/2008/pr08_063.htm |title=USPS Postal News Release No. 08-063 |publisher=usps.com |date=June 5, 2008 |access-date=September 1, 2009 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090511115012/http://www.usps.com/communications/newsroom/2008/pr08_063.htm |archive-date=May 11, 2009 }}</ref>
* A '''[[network distribution center]]''', formerly known as a [[bulk mail]] center (BMC), is a central mail facility that processes bulk rate parcels as the hub in a [[hub and spoke network]].
* An '''auxiliary sorting facility''' ('''ASF''') is a central mail facility that processes bulk rate parcels as spokes in a hub and spoke network.
* A '''remote encoding center''' ('''REC''') is a facility at which clerks receive images of problem mail pieces (those with hard-to-read addresses, etc.) via secure Internet-type feeds and manually type the addresses they can decipher, using a special encoding protocol. The mail pieces are then sprayed with the correct addresses or are sorted for further handling according to the instructions given via encoding. The total number of RECs is down from 55 in 1998 to just 1 center in December 2016. The last REC is in [[Salt Lake City]], Utah.<ref>{{Cite news|url=http://www.sltrib.com/news/3445651-155/the-first-and-last-of-its|title=The first and last of its kind, a Salt Lake City postal facility looks to grow|last=Piper|first=Matthew|newspaper=[[The Salt Lake Tribune]]|language=en-US|access-date=January 28, 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170202054727/http://www.sltrib.com/news/3445651-155/the-first-and-last-of-its|archive-date=February 2, 2017|url-status=live}}</ref>
* A '''remotely managed post office''' ('''RMPO''') is an office with part-time window hours that is staffed by a Postal Service employee but managed remotely by a postmaster at a larger office.
* A '''part-time post office''' ('''PTPO''') is a Post Office that offers part-time window service hours, is staffed by a Postal Service employee, and reports to a district office.<ref>{{cite web |title=Handbook PO-101 Revision: Post Office Organization |url=https://about.usps.com/postal-bulletin/2012/pb22344/html/updt_008.htm |website=about.usps.com |access-date=14 November 2024}}</ref>

While common usage refers to all types of postal facilities as "substations", the USPS Glossary of Postal Terms does not define or even list that word.<ref name="glossary">[http://www.usps.com/cpim/ftp/pubs/pub32.pdf Publication 32 – Glossary of Postal Terms] {{webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090508210619/http://www.usps.com/cpim/ftp/pubs/pub32.pdf |date=May 8, 2009 }}. (PDF). Retrieved July 8, 2011.</ref> Post Offices often share facilities with other governmental organizations located within a city's central business district. In those locations, often courthouses and federal buildings, the building is owned by the [[General Services Administration]] while the U.S. Postal Services operates as a [[tenement (law)|tenant]].<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.gsa.gov/Portal/gsa/ep/contentView.do?contentType=GSA_BASIC&contentId=18257 |website=General Services Administration |title=Texas Federal Buildings:Galveston U.S. Post Office and Courthouse |access-date=December 20, 2009 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20091117075004/http://www.gsa.gov/Portal/gsa/ep/contentView.do?contentType=GSA_BASIC&contentId=18257 |archive-date=November 17, 2009}}</ref> The USPS retail system has approximately 36,000 post offices, stations, and branches.<ref>USPS.com. Retrieved July 8, 2011 from {{cite web|url=http://www.usps.com/strategicplanning/cs08/chpt4_pg38.htm|title=Comprehensive Statement on Postal Operations 2008|access-date=April 5, 2009|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090509021712/https://www.usps.com/strategicplanning/cs08/chpt4_pg38.htm|archive-date=May 9, 2009}}</ref>

==== Self-Service Kiosks ====
[[File:APC 77598 Webster Texas.jpg|thumb|upright|A 24-hour Automated Postal Center kiosk inside the [[Webster, Texas]] main post office]]In 2004, the USPS began deploying Automated Postal Centers (APCs) at USPS locations.<ref name="APC04">{{cite web |title=Lunewsviews.com |url=http://www.lunewsviews.com/sspcplans.htm |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120802031753/http://www.lunewsviews.com/sspcplans.htm |archive-date=August 2, 2012 |access-date=July 15, 2024 |publisher=Lunewsviews.com}}</ref> In the early 2010s, the USPS renamed APCs to '''Self-Service Kiosks''' ('''SSKs''').<ref name="Frost">{{Cite news |last=Frost |first=Mary |date=August 2, 2013 |title=After complaints, DUMBO post office reopens |url=https://brooklyneagle.com/articles/2013/08/02/after-complaints-dumbo-post-office-reopens/ |access-date=July 15, 2024 |work=Brooklyn Eagle}}</ref> Self-Service Kiosks are [[automated]] and are able to weigh and mail parcels, letters and flats, renew postal office boxes, and print postage.<ref name="Baadke">{{Cite news |last=Baadke |first=Michael |date=November 5, 2019 |title=U.S. self-service kiosks won't vend new Christmas labels in 2019 |url=https://www.linns.com/news/us-stamps-postal-history/u.s.-self-service-kiosks-won-t-vend-new-christmas-labels-in-2019 |access-date=July 15, 2024 |work=Linns Stamp News}}</ref>

==== Evolutionary Network Development (END) program ====
In February 2006, the USPS announced that they plan to replace the nine existing facility-types with five processing facility-types:<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.lunewsviews.com/consolidations.htm |title=Lunewsviews.com |publisher=Lunewsviews.com |access-date=July 18, 2012 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120324001913/http://www.lunewsviews.com/consolidations.htm |archive-date=March 24, 2012 |url-status=live }}</ref>
* '''Regional Distribution Centers''' ('''RDCs'''), which will process all classes of parcels and bundles and serve as Surface Transfer Centers;
* '''Local Processing Centers''' ('''LPCs'''), which will process single-piece letters and flats and cancel mail;
* '''Destination Processing Centers''' ('''DPC'''), sort the mail for individual letter-carrier route;
* '''Airport Transfer Centers''' ('''ATCs'''), which will serve as transfer points only; and
* '''Remote Encoding Centers''' ('''RECs''').

Over a period of years, these facilities are expected to replace Processing & Distribution Centers, Customer Service Facilities, Bulk Mail Centers, Logistic and Distribution Centers, annexes, the Hub and Spoke Program, Air Mail Centers, and International Service Centers.

The changes are a result of the declining volumes of single-piece First-Class Mail, population shifts, the increase in drop shipments by advertising mailers at destinating postal facilities, advancements in equipment and technology, redundancies in the existing network, and the need for operational flexibility.

The program was ended in early 2007 after an analysis revealed that the significant amount of capital investment required to implement the END network concept would not generate the benefits originally anticipated.<ref>{{cite web | url=https://about.usps.com/postal-act-2006/postal-service-networkplan.htm | title=Postal Accountability And Enhancement Act §&nbsp;302 Network Plan | access-date=May 5, 2020 | archive-date=May 23, 2020 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200523105341/https://about.usps.com/postal-act-2006/postal-service-networkplan.htm | url-status=live }}</ref>

==== Airline and rail division ====
[[File:Boeing 727-223(F), US Postal Service AN0236566.jpg|thumbnail|A former United States Postal Service [[Boeing 727]]-200 aircraft at [[Miami International Airport]] in 1999]]

The United States Postal Service does not directly own or operate any aircraft or trains, although both were formerly operated. The mail and packages are flown on airlines with which the Postal Service has a contractual agreement. The contracts change periodically. Contract airlines have included: [[United Parcel Service|UPS]], [[FedEx Express]], [[American Airlines]], [[United Airlines]].

The last air delivery route in the continental U.S., to residents in the [[Frank Church–River of No Return Wilderness]], was scheduled to be ended in June 2009. The weekly [[bush plane]] route, contracted out to an [[air taxi]] company, had in its final year an annual cost of $46,000, or $2400/year per residence, over ten times the average cost of delivering mail to a residence in the United States.<ref name="idaho">[https://wheretobuyastamp.com/ Where to Buy Stamps] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180903152355/https://wheretobuyastamp.com/ |date=September 3, 2018 }}'</ref> This decision has been reversed by the U.S. postmaster general.<ref>{{cite web| url= http://minnick.house.gov/2009/05/idaho-delegation-gets-reversal-on-backcountry-mail-delivery-decision.shtml| title= Idaho delegation gets reversal on backcountry mail delivery decision| website= Press release | date=May 7, 2009| archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20090527230620/http://minnick.house.gov/2009/05/idaho-delegation-gets-reversal-on-backcountry-mail-delivery-decision.shtml| archive-date= May 27, 2009| publisher= House.gov | access-date=July 8, 2013}}</ref>

==== Parcel forwarding and private interchange ====
Private US parcel forwarding or US mail forwarding companies focusing on personal shopper, relocation, Ex-pat and mail box services often interface with the United States Postal Service for transporting of mail and packages for their customers.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.usps.com/manage/forward.htm|title=Forward Mail {{!}} USPS|website=www.usps.com|access-date=January 25, 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180125025859/https://www.usps.com/manage/forward.htm|archive-date=January 25, 2018|url-status=live}}</ref>