Posti will postpone the planned changes to mail delivery in postal code areas on islands serviced by ferries in the archipelago of Turku. Before implementing the changes, Posti wants to hear from the residents concerning delivery arrangements in the archipelago and wait for the investigation report from the Finnish Transport and Communications Agency Traficom.
The changes to mail delivery in the Turku archipelago were planned to become effective from June 3, 2019. The changes comply with the 2017 Postal Act, which stipulates that postal items included in the universal service must be delivered to areas with difficult terrain in the archipelago at least once a week. A maximum total of 1,000 households throughout the country may be included in the exception.
Posti is forced to lower its delivery expenses as delivery volumes are rapidly decreasing and the declining proceeds no longer cover the costs of a five-day delivery. On average, Posti currently delivers only 5.5 addressed items to households per week. However, the delivery still takes place five times a week and, in the outer archipelago in particular, the delivery cost for a single letter or postcard is much more expensive. In practice, the loss resulting from deliveries to the archipelago is paid for by Posti’s other customers as Posti operates without state subsidy.
