Postbox peeves pedestrians
Canada Post mailbox blocking part of sidewalk creates a safety hazard
It’s nice to have a Canada Post mailbox close by, but when it roosts on a busy sidewalk it’s a bit too handy.
Striking Canada Post employees have been engaged in rotating walkouts for more than a week, affecting home delivery and pickups of letters and small parcels dropped into mailboxes.
There was a time when a postal strike could seriously screw things up. Not so much today, although Canada Post has become key to the online shopping business, and more recently, to the delivery of mailorder marijuana.
For many people, the mail seems to contain little more than advertising flyers from their local fitness club or real estate agent.
So when a mailbox ends up occupying nearly half the sidewalk, some people see it not just as an obstacle to pedestrians, but an irritation with minimal purpose.
Catriel Blum emailed to say a parking lot on the west side of Bathurst, just south of Glengrove Ave., was repaved last summer.
As a result, a mailbox that had long roosted at its fringe ended up on the sidewalk.
“It’s a hazard for pedestrians because of the narrowed sidewalk, but it will also be a barrier to snow plows because they will not be able to get through,” he said.
“Can we get this mailbox back to its original non-blocking position between the parking lots? I’d do it myself but it’s too heavy for me to push (I tried!)” Status: We sent a note Wednesday to Canada Post. We got an interesting reply a day later from spokesperson Jon Hamilton, who said the box “was moved (Wednesday) night to its original place. It is now off the sidewalk.” He went on to say the box “was moved by someone other than us,” adding that “unfortunately … our employees did not flag it. If anyone has questions or concerns about our equipment they should contact customer service. We would ask residents not to attempt to do it themselves.” Someone obviously took matters into their own hands. People will only wait for so long before going the do-it-yourself route. To report issues to Canada Post, call 1-800-267-1177.