Going Postal

We've all heard the cliché that neither rain, nor sleet, nor hail will stop the mail, but Canada Post now claims rural delivery has become a risky business. As part of a nationwide initiative, Canada Post will conduct a Rural Mail Safety Review of mailboxes on three West Hants routes in order to determine the level of safety for delivery drivers and customers.

Canada Post says the study was created in response to driver complaints. In a letter to the Municipality of West Hants, Canada Post communications spokesperson Tinna Bonner said the corporation has fielded hundreds of complaints or refusals from delivery employees within the past three years. And though in those cases, a solution has been found, she said they need to address those risks.

Canada Post has said it has a responsibly to provide a safe working environment for all staff, including postal drivers, and stated that the nature of many of Canada’s rural and suburban areas is changing. As well, increased traffic has made rural mail delivery potentially hazardous for mail carriers and other drivers. Although Canada Post has taken steps to increase the visibility of postal vehicles with rooftop signs and flashing lights, there is still no predicting the response of other drivers.

“Enhanced visibility does not address all situations where Canada Post employees, customers and other drivers are at risk,” Bonner said.

Newly-developed assessment tool

During the West Hants review, each rural box will be judged according to Canada Post’s newly-developed Traffic Safety Assessment tool, and should a box not meet the criteria, the residents would have up to 15 days to find an alternative.

For those affected customers, Bonner said a corporation representative would meet with them face-to-face to explain their options, which could include relocating the box or rerouting mail to a Community Mailbox (CMP) or a free PO box.

“I should point out that our priority is to maintain rural mailbox delivery wherever possible, and changing a customer's delivery mode is only considered as a last resort,” she said.

Some members of municipal council, however, are not convinced rerouting mail is such a great idea. Deputy Warden Gary Cochrane said could pose a hazard to Canada Post customers. “I think there is just a complete disregard for safety on our highways, and our residents are the scapegoats.”

He fears shifting mail delivery could do more harm than good if customers need to walk to a community mailbox. “What we'll end up with is a lot of dead residents and that would be a dire, dire tragedy.”

Sincere safety effort

Coun. Randy Matheson said although he is not in favour of putting any customers in jeopardy, especially seniors, he understands the risk some areas pose to delivery drivers. “In some streets the whole street poses a risk. This is a sincere effort to try to be safe.”

Canada Post said that in the past three years alone, there have been more than 70 traffic accidents and three deaths directly related to rural mailbox delivery.

Cindy Hebb a driver with the Windsor Post Office says there have been times she's put herself at risk delivering the mail. “There are some spots that are really are quite dangerous,” especially where traffic is heavy or where large transport trucks run, she said.

Hebb noted that customers also need to take weather conditions into consideration. Last winter, she said, delivering mail along rural routes was a real headache because so many customers neglected to clear the snow and ice from around their box. “Sometimes it’s almost impossible to get to their box at all.”

The safety review will apply a set of details criteria, which will consider factors such as volume, types of vehicles and speed of traffic, sight lines and stopping distances, as well as the delivery vehicles position on the road.