Canada Post community mailbox program halt too late for many Ottawans

Ottawa addresses scheduled to lose door-to-door mail delivery in October will still go through the transition to community mailboxes despite Monday'sannouncement by Canada Post that the controversial program has been put on hold.

• Canada Post halts controversial community mailbox program

People whose postal codes begin with K2G, K2E, K2C,K1S,K1Z an estimated 34,000 homes that receive deliveries from the Merivale and Parkdale depots transitioned to community mailboxes Monday, saidIan Anderson,president of the Ottawa chapter of theCanadian Union of Postal Workers.

Canada Post confirmed those Ottawa addresses are not part ofthe roughly 460,000 addresses across the country included in theprogram suspension.

"In neighbourhoods where the 10-month internal and community conversion process is complete, customers will collect mail and parcels at their community mailbox. This includes customers setto begin receiving their mail and parcels in their boxes in October. We remain focused on maintaining reliable postal service to all Canadians without disruption," Canada Post said in a news release.

Kanata addresses with the postal codes K2K, K2L and K2M, as well as Barrhaven addresses with the K2J postal code, began using the community mailboxes earlier this year.

Program should have been halted sooner, union says

Prime minister-designateJustin Trudeaupromised during the federal election campaign that a Liberal government would stop the Conservative plan to enddoor-to-door mail delivery.

The Canadian Union of Postal Workers said Canada Post should have halted the community mailbox program sooner after the election.

"It's unfortunate that it took them until today to do it because tens of thousands of people incommunities across this country lost their door-to-door delivery today," said Mike Palecek, the union's national president.

The union is calling on the incoming Liberalgovernment to restore door-to-door service for everyone who's been transitioned to community mailboxes, to review Canada Post's mandate and to explore new revenue streams.

The Liberal Party has so fardeclined to comment on the Canada Postannouncement.

'Timing couldn't have been worse'

"The timing couldn't have been worse," said Gary Miller, who started receiving mail in a community mailbox for the first time on Monday.

"Since it just started today ... for the life of me I can't see what they're going to do here. Are they going to tear down these boxes that they just installed all around the neighbourhood? Are they going to get rid of them? ... I guess we have to wait and see what develops."

Miller said while he'd be glad to see the mailboxes go, "it makes no logical sense" to tear them down after spending the money to have them installed.

Peter McClintock agreed.

"I just got my first letter today in my mailbox, so I guess I'm stuck with it," he said."Whether it's fair or not, how much money have they invested in this already?"

Outgoing Transport Minister Lisa Raitt, whose portfolio includes Canada Post, said it's an "arm's-length Crown corporation" that makes decisions independent of government.