Why Is Postage From Canada SO Expensive

[TheDutchman92]

Anyone know what the US can post at competitive prices and Canada cannot?

 

[Rustpot]

Anyone know what the US can post at competitive prices and Canada cannot?

Because the US Postal Service is being run into the red trying to stay competitive with UPS and FedEx and is a lot cheaper than it should be.

 

[TheDutchman92]

Because the US Postal Service is being run into the red trying to stay competitive with UPS and FedEx and is a lot cheaper than it should be.

That makes sense, so the only thing keeping it afloat is the US Government because the constitution says they have to? However how is it so that I can send parcels worldwide from Australia for under $30 AUD with tracking? There is only one postal service here, it's a monopoly and they can and do charge what they want.

 

[Rustpot]

That makes sense, so the only thing keeping it afloat is the US Government because the constitution says they have to? However how is it so that I can send parcels worldwide from Australia for under $30 AUD with tracking? There is only one postal service here, it's a monopoly and they can and do charge what they want.

I can't comment on the postal systems of other countries. Our Constitution has no provisions for a postal service. It's outdated, bloated, over unionized... just like every other arm of our current government in the US.

 

[ucdavis4PT0gpa]

I can't comment on the postal systems of other countries. Our Constitution has no provisions for a postal service. It's outdated, bloated, over unionized... just like every other arm of our current government in the US.

There is a provision for the postal service; its Article I, Section 8, Clause 7 and is known commonly as the "Postal Clause" or "Postal Power". There are various reasons behind it but its primarily rooted in an early attempt to generate revenue (if you can believe that) and encourage interstate communcation in the fledgling United States.

Now, as for USPS being less than any other country or UPS/Fed Ex-those days are numbered. Already the spikes in costs are noticable and will only get worse with the intentional throttling of the delivery times for First Class which will cause people to start using Priority even for some letters which is now nearly $6 and soon to be $6.50..plus the weight classes are being messed with to kick the majority of packages into a higher rate class sooner.

As for Australia Post? I would venture to guess that a) they are structurally (and therefore operationally) cheaper...I mean I have 3 post offices within 10 minutes drive of me...that's insane and an outdated remnant of the old "one post office for every zip" rule; and b) Australia Post is wholly government owned AND subsidized...the USPS has not (contrary to what many believe or want others to believe) been subsidized with a cent of taxpayer money in nearly 30 years---though doing so would, for obvious reasons, keep consumer end costs lower.

 

[Rustpot]

There is a provision for the postal service; its Article I, Section 8, Clause 7 and is known commonly as the "Postal Clause" or "Postal Power". There are various reasons behind it but its primarily rooted in an early attempt to generate revenue (if you can believe that) and encourage interstate communcation in the fledgling United States.

It grants Congress the power to establish post offices and roads/routes. It does not state that a postal service i.e. letter carriers, is part of that, or that Congress must oversee the nation's post service. I'm all for privatizing our mail and leaving the buildings and routes under government control.

 

[BADNESS]

Everything is more expensive here. Vancouver was just rated the 2nd most expensive city in the world to live in! Free health care my ass!