USPS launches same-day Amazon pilot with 200-package midday drop in three cities
USPS began delivering select Amazon packages the same day they arrive at its facilities after adding a midday drop. The pilot starts with 200 packages a day each in Morgantown, WV and Lake Havasu City, AZ, then scales to 500 a day in Columbia, SC from October 20. Packages received between noon and 1 pm are sorted by clerks and dispatched with carriers by 8 pm under the pilot.
Amazon said the extra drop lets it offer same‑day delivery to shoppers who order later in the day when USPS handles the last mile. The pilot adds a second daily drop of Amazon packages on top of the usual morning shipment.
In March Amazon had planned to cut its USPS volume by more than two‑thirds after the Postal Service moved to auction off last‑mile capacity, with the contract set to expire in September.
A month later the sides agreed to a new deal that trimmed Amazon’s volume by just 20 %, leaving roughly 80 % of the over‑one‑billion packages USPS had hauled for Amazon the prior year.
Business Insider recently reported that Amazon’s secret Project Aurelian aims to reach 95 % of U.S. ZIP codes with its own delivery network by 2029, which would reduce reliance on USPS in thousands of markets.
What we know
USPS started delivering some Amazon packages the same day they arrive at its facilities, under a new pilot in which Amazon drops a second batch off midday, on top of its usual morning drop-off, according to Supply Chain Dive.
Packages that come in between 12pm and 1pm get sorted by clerks and go out with postal carriers by 8pm, starting with 200 packages a day each in Morgantown, WV and Lake Havasu City, AZ, then 500 a day in Columbia, SC, from October 20, per a letter carriers’ union memo.
In March, I reported that Amazon planned to cut its USPS volume by more than two-thirds after the Postal Service moved to auction off its last-mile delivery capacity to the highest bidders instead of negotiating with Amazon directly, with their contract set to expire in September.
A month later, they reached a new deal that cut Amazon’s volume by just 20%, keeping roughly 80% of the more than one billion packages USPS delivered for Amazon the year before.
As recently as last week, Business Insider reported that Amazon has a secret plan called Project Aurelian that aims to reach 95% of US ZIP codes with its own delivery network by 2029, replacing USPS in thousands of markets.