Fayetteville Growth Causing Mail Delays

Part of the problem is the UPS strike. The other part is that the amountof mail increases as the population grows, which means mail carriers haveto change routes to keep up with the demand. That has meant some peoplehave been getting their mail hours later than normal.

"Previously its come around 2:00 however lately it's been coming aftersunset," said Sharon Kimmes, Fayetteville resident.

Unlike several other carriers George Shaw's route hasn't changed but hisloads have gotten bigger. He can spend more than 10 hours a day making sure customers get their mail. That can put some deliveries off until thelate afternoon which is a problem for people like Kimmes who do businessat home.

"Without the things that are being delivered everyday for my business itactually puts me behind," said Kimmes.

Carriers are doing what they can to see that everyone is back to a normal schedule. But in a city where 800,000 pieces of mail are delivered everyday somebody's got to be at the end of the route.

This is not just a problem in Fayetteville. Some Raleigh neighborhoods have experienced similar delays. But the postmaster says the time of day mailgets delivered could change, but the mail will still arrive everyday.