WASHINGTON — Several area post offices are being targeted for closure. The U.S. Postal Service announced today it could close 3,700 post offices across the country, including some in the area. The U.S. Postal Service said it will start studies whether to close post offices at Rantoul, Welda, Westphalia, Fontana, Centerville and Kincaid, and whether there are any alternative sites where the postal service could offer stamps and other services. The postal service said customers are doing more online and on smart phones so it no longer needs to operate as many post offices. The postal service lost $8.5 billion last year in revenue as people pay bills electronically and read magazines on tablet computers, said Dean Granholm, vice president of delivery and operations. Half of all bill payments are now done online, advertisers mail fewer circulars and catalogs, and customers can buy stamps out of an ATM, he said. “Our infrastructure was built to handle more demand than we have today,” Granholm said. “Many of our post offices do not generate much revenue, have very little foot traffic and do not have very much workload.” Some will be replaced with kiosks in grocery stores or gas stations. The postal service has also been trying to cut mail delivery to five days a week.
Tuesday, July 26, 1 p.m.
