The Postal Service’s busiest week of the holiday season is about to begin.
The organization predicts it will deliver almost 2.5 billion pieces of mail — including more than 28 million packages per day — from Dec. 16-21.
Overall, USPS plans to deliver about 800 million packages between Thanksgiving and New Year’s Day, with more than 8 million package deliveries expected each Sunday in December.
Employees say they’re ready.
“I enjoy taking great care of my customers throughout the year, and it’s extra special during Christmas when I deliver Christmas cards and presents and I see kids’ faces light up with smiles of excitement,” said Tulsa, OK, Letter Carrier Sheldon Gore.
In addition to serving customers at Post Offices, USPS is preparing for a rush online, too.
The organization predicts usps.com will have its busiest day of the season Dec. 16, when the site is expected to receive 8.5 million visitors, up more than 6 percent from last year.
This includes almost 400,000 customers who will use the Click-N-Ship feature and other online services to order free Priority Mail boxes, print shipping labels, purchase postage and request free next-day Package Pickup.
No matter what the week brings, many employees said they’ll give customers the best service possible.
“Making a customer smile is one of the best rewards of the holiday season,” said Marla Basque, a Layton, UT, retail associate.