USPS ends evening mail pickups in Vermont under DeJoy plan

The U.S. Postal Service has eliminated evening mail collection throughout Vermont, implementing a strategy that extends first-class mail delivery from two days to three days for many state residents. The change, called Regional Transportation Optimization, is part of the “Delivering for America” restructuring that began under former Postmaster General Louis DeJoy and continues under his successor, David Steiner. USPS did not publicly announce the change until it was revealed through a regulatory filing in January.

The combined effect of the reduced collection schedule and recent changes to postmark rules has raised concerns among election officials and advocacy groups, who worry that delayed mail could disqualify ballots or cause other mail-dependent transactions to be marked late.

How Regional Transportation Optimization Works

The U.S. Postal Service previously sent postal trucks to Vermont post offices twice per day — once in the morning and once in the evening — to collect mail and transport it to the regional processing center in Springfield, Massachusetts. Regional Transportation Optimization eliminates the evening pickup, meaning any mail arriving at a post office after the morning collection sits there until the following day before being transported.

“The Postal Service doesn’t want the public to pay any attention to this change in its transportation policies and the slower service standards that the change is causing,” said Steve Hutkins, founder of the advocacy organization Save the Post Office.

This transportation change directly affects service standards. For first-class mail, USPS has shifted many parts of Vermont from a two-day service standard to a three-day standard, according to a public map the postal service published. Some mail destined for other parts of the country now takes up to five days to arrive.

There are limited exceptions. Local mail addressed to places near Vermont’s two Local Processing and Distribution Centers in Burlington and White River Junction may still reach those facilities and be processed more quickly than mail routed to Springfield. The postal service proposed closing these two local centers in 2024 but abandoned that plan following political opposition.

Postmark Changes and Election Concerns

On December 24, 2025, the postal service changed its rules governing postmarks. The new rules clarify that the postmark does not “inherently or necessarily align with the date” that a piece of mail arrived at the postal service. In practice, this means mail placed in a post office could receive a postmark dated the following day — potentially making a bill payment appear late or affecting other mail-dependent transactions.

Hutkins warned that the later postmark could have serious consequences. “A bill payment could be considered past due, or even a mail-in ballot could be disqualified,” he said.

The combination of mail delays and postmark changes has prompted concerns about mail-in voting. On January 15, 2026, 16 U.S. senators sent a letter to USPS expressing fear that the changes “could mean more mail-in ballots being rejected.” Election officials often rely on postmarks to determine whether a ballot arrived by Election Day, making the timing critical.

USPS spokesperson Amy Gibbs responded that the new postmark system does not signal a change in postmarking procedures, but only attempts to “improve public understanding of the information postmarks convey.”

The Broader Delivering for America Plan

Regional Transportation Optimization is one component of “Delivering for America,” a multi-year restructuring strategy that began in 2021 under former Postmaster General Louis DeJoy. The plan encompassed service cuts and operational changes intended to reduce costs and make the Postal Service “efficient and financially self-sustaining,” according to USPS.

DeJoy resigned from the position in February 2025. Vermont Senator Peter Welch issued a statement at that time: “Good riddance. DeJoy’s restructuring plan has led to unacceptable mail delivery delays across Vermont, especially in rural areas of the state.”

David Steiner now holds the position of Postmaster General. Before his appointment, Steiner served on the board of FedEx, one of USPS’s major competitors, for over a decade.

Impact on Vermonters

Postal staffing shortages have compounded the transportation challenges in some communities. In Montpelier, four postal routes were left vacant by staffing shortages, leading to complaints about delayed mail and packages. Hutkins noted that while overall postal worker levels have remained relatively stable, retaining part-time workers has been a persistent challenge. A 2016 USPS report found the annual turnover rate for non-career employees exceeded 40 percent.

Elizabeth Newman, a resident of Hinesburg, said her mail delivery had improved from 2023 and 2024, when she was receiving mail only once a week. But even with more frequent delivery, service remains fragile. “A single mail carrier getting sick seems to lead to all the mail in town coming to a halt,” she said.

Faced with unreliable mail delivery, many Vermonters have shifted to online bill payment when possible. “Regularly, we were having to call our credit card companies, and they hadn’t received stuff or it was delayed,” Newman said.

For customers trying to understand the changes, the lack of public information has been frustrating. “The postal service is like a black box of information,” Newman said. “You can never find out what happened or why.”