Street Assignment

As route inspection looms soon for some maybe all offices at some point in the future, I think it is about time that we protect what we have in the street.
    The first thing I am going to talk about is that your scanner is not your friend unless you use it wisely.  That scanner that you have attached to your bag or hip is like having a supervisor with you every day all day long. That scanner records everything that you are doing from how long it takes you to put your relay in your bag. To how long it takes you to get from one relay point to the next. It will record how long you are on stationary time, to how long it takes you to deliver from house to house. So, if you are a professional letter carrier the scanner is your best friend but if you are an unprofessional letter carrier that scanner is your worst nightmare! With that said you should always drive the speed limit. Mostly all the towns on Long Island are between 20 to 30 mph. There is no reason you should jeopardize your safety by driving over the speed limit to appease management. 
    I know I said this article would be about street time but how many of you do a vehicle inspection?  I know that it is an office function but when I visit stations I rarely see anyone doing a vehicle inspection anymore. This Branch wants you to come to work safely, work safely during the day and go home safely to your loved ones! There is no excuse for you not to do a vehicle inspection. 
    Relay Points: As you are driving your vehicle to relay points or collecting mail from boxes or picking up pick-ups from stores remember that you must park the vehicle at a safe location. Do not park at a fire hydrant, do not park at a bus stop, do not park blocking someone’s driveway, do not park where the street sign says, “no parking” or “handicap parking,” do not double park. You must park your vehicle in a safe location, and you must chock the wheels, take the key out of the ignition, roll up the window so no one can put their hands down the window to release door lock and lock the doors every time you get out of the vehicle.
    Parcel Delivery: If the parcel is too big or heavy to put into your satchel the proper way to deliver that package is as follows: If you park your vehicle before the address with the big parcel.  You flag the house with mail for that address and when you are done with the relay, you drive to the address and deliver both the mail and the parcel at the same time. If you are passing the address prior to parking the vehicle at the relay point, you stop at the address and get both the mail and the parcel and deliver it before you start your relay. 
    Accountable Mail: according to the M-41: section 122.22 Deliver and obtain date, time of event, and signature receipts for registered, certified, Express Mail, insured, and other special services mail. Use scanning device where appropriate. Section 122.221: Receipt for such matter, except insured and Delivery Confirmation mail, at the Post Office before beginning route.
    M-41 section 123.2: Report to unit manager all unusual incidents of conditions relating to mail delivery, including mail found trapped behind wall-mounted and wall-recessed apartment house mailbox units, condition of street letterboxes and relay boxes (e.g., unanchored boxes and schedules).
    M- 41 Delivery and Collection Rules: section 131.11: Keep the mail in your possession or locked in a relay box or vehicle. All equipment and undeliverable mail must be returned to the post office at the end of each trip. Section 131.12: If the use of a satchel cart is authorized, exercise reasonable care to prevent any attempted theft from the cart while delivering your route. Section 131.22: Do not place letters, large flats, and other mail within the pages of magazines, catalogs, etc., at any time. Whenever letters and flats are cased together; care must be exercised to avoid having letters fall between pages of magazines, etc. Section 131.44: Report on Form 1571 all mail undelivered — including all mail distributed to the route but not cased and taken out for delivery or mail/relays brought back in the afternoon. Estimate the number of pieces of mail. Section 132.11: Accept letters handed to you by customers for mailing, providing that postage is affixed. Go to the door to receive this mail from the customer if possible. Section 132.21: Collect mail from
designated street letterboxes, cooperative mailing racks, and mail chute receiving boxes. Avoid standing in the street when loading or emptying these boxes. Section 132.24: Report to manager any person who tampers with or deliberately damages mailboxes or takes mail from them without authority. Section 133.2: Do not finger mail when driving, or when walking up or down steps or curbs, when crossing streets, or at any time it would create a safety hazard to the carriers or to the public. Section 133.3: Use crosswalks when crossing busy streets and following traffic signals or the direction of traffic control personnel. Section 133.6: Report immediately when you are being followed. A number of important arrests have resulted from such reports.
    Breaks: Depending on your local agreement you get either one or two street breaks. These street breaks are usually 10 or 15 minutes long. You cannot take them in conjunction with your lunch break, they must be separate. The union fought hard for you to get breaks because of the hard work that you perform take them or LOSE THEM.
    Comfort Stop: You are allowed to go to comfort stops for bathroom purposes. The bathroom must be a clean safe location. If there are none available, you may return to the post office to use their bathroom facilities. 
    Lunch Break: You get a half hour for lunch nothing more or nothing less. Your lunch break starts when you get back into your vehicle after the last delivery on that relay. If you are driving to a location to take lunch the time it takes you to travel to and from is included in your lunch period. If you do not take lunch and work through it after 6 hours of work the USPS automatically deducts a half hour from your timecard. So again, use it or lose it. 
  These are just some examples on how to protect your assignment while out on the street. If you want a complete run down of how to be a professional letter carrier in the street, I suggest that you read the M-41 manual that is at your case on how to perform your duties as a professional letter carrier.