As the United States Postal Service competes with other delivery companies like FedEx and UPS, the postal service has hired contractors to help fill in service gaps. That solution to the high demand could be contributing to flaws in safety enforcement.
As entities, such as trucking operations, bid for competitive contracts and face tough schedules to meet modern demands, safety rules appeared to be sacrificed in some cases, according to new data analysis.
Citing law enforcement vehicle accident reports and other records, The Wall Street Journal found that contractors for USPS were involved in at least 68 deadly crashes where 79 people were killed in the last three years.
Last year, USPS reportedly said it was reviewing a trucking company's safety record after it was involved in a deadly accident in Colorado which killed five members of a family.
Then in February, the postal service confirmed it was canceling a contract with a California-based trucking operation connected to a pattern of safety issues and two drivers who were involved in multiple deadly crashes in the last two years, according to industry publication Freight Waves.
An attorney for the trucking company didn't comment on the matter.
In a report from the USPS Office of Inspector General, it noted that for the Postal Service itself, it "did not always effectively manage controls over reporting motor vehicle and industrial accidents." That data would be viewed separately from data on contractors.
As USPS spokesperson Sue Brennan told WSJ, the service will begin mandating that contractors meet specific Department of Transportation requirements to be contracted, and the DOT will plan to monitor their performance.
US Postal Service to buy 9,250 Ford electric delivery vans
The plan is part of the Postal Service's larger initiative announced in December to electrify 75% of its fleet by 2028.
