U.S. Postal Service prepared for peak season surge

The U.S. Postal Service (USPS) is preparing for the holiday shipping surge and anticipates delivering mail and packages within an average of 2.5 days during the 2025 peak season, an improvement from 2.8 days in the same period last year. The carrier expects a 40% increase in mail and package volumes from October 1 to December 31.

In response to the anticipated surge, the USPS has hired more than 10,000 seasonal workers, down from 14,000 last year. The workforce has become more stable due to reduced supervisor vacancies and lowered overtime rates since 2020, diminishing the need for temporary help.

Postmaster General David Steiner stated, "We have been preparing all year for this peak season, and we have enough capacity to handle whatever comes our way." USPS attributes its ability to efficiently handle the increased volumes to new technology, logistics planning, and execution.

Last year, between November 15 and January 9, on-time delivery scores improved in nearly all service categories, with the best scores in last-mile delivery. The USPS also installed 164 sophisticated, automated package sorting machines, part of a $40 billion investment plan begun in 2022 to transform its middle-mile network. Additionally, the carrier now has 673 high-speed sorters, which can handle more and larger parcels than previous-generation machines.

Since 2022, the USPS has opened 31 sorting and delivery centers (S&DCs) and 10 regional processing and distribution centers (RCDCs) that work in tandem with 35 local processing facilities. These centers consolidate work previously assigned to over 18,000 destination delivery units (DDUs), which are often too small, ill-equipped, and poorly maintained. S&DCs bring focus and structure to the network and use the latest automated sorting equipment to serve 200,000 customers daily.