CANADA Post announced on Thursday that it is transforming to restore and renew the country’s postal service, and that work is now underway. The Corporation has reached a turning point and is taking action to ensure it can meet the evolving needs of Canadians in a financially sustainable way.
Following initial meetings with its bargaining agents, the Corporation is starting preliminary work on two core initiatives: converting the remaining addresses that receive door-to-door delivery to community mailboxes and modernizing its retail network.
Canada Post says its transformation will strengthen the postal service, allow it to be a better partner for businesses, enable national commerce, and help it meet its dual mandate of delivering for all Canadians without being a recurring burden on taxpayers. It’s therefore important the Corporation move forward in a timely manner while working closely with its bargaining agents and the Government of Canada.
Nearly three out of every four Canadian addresses already receive their mail and parcels through some form of centralized delivery.
Canada Post is converting approximately four million addresses that still receive door-to-door delivery to community mailboxes. The national conversion program is expected to take about five years, with different areas moving to community mailboxes each year.
The Corporation is initiating discussions with 13 communities as it prepares to begin converting approximately 136,000 addresses from door-to-door delivery to community mailboxes in late 2026 and early 2027.
In British Columbia:
* Community / Addresses with postal codes beginning with… / Number of addresses (approximately):
– Abbotsford, B.C.: V2S -, V2T – 11,000
– Mission, B.C.: V2V – 6,000
– City of North Vancouver, District of North Vancouver and West Vancouver, B.C.: V7M, V7P, V7R, V7S, V7T, V7V, V7W – 23,000
Converting an address from door-to-door delivery to a community mailbox typically takes months. Canada Post will engage with communities as it identifies suitable locations for community mailbox sites. It is also notifying residents of the upcoming change to their mail delivery, and will keep them, businesses, bargaining agents and employees informed every step of the way.
Most of the addresses selected for this phase of conversion are adjacent to areas that already receive delivery to community mailboxes. Canada Post understands converting dense urban core areas poses additional challenges. These areas will be addressed in later stages of the multi-year conversion program.
Community mailboxes provide secure, locked compartments for mail and parcels, offering residents consistent, reliable access at any time of day. They have been part of Canada’s delivery network for more than 40 years and are used by millions of Canadians.
More than 80 per cent of parcels delivered by Canada Post fit into a community mailbox’s individual compartment or a dedicated parcel compartment. Parcels that don’t fit or that require a signature are delivered to the door or held for pickup at a nearby post office.
Canada Post is responsible for maintaining and servicing all community mailboxes to ensure they remain safe and accessible. This includes clearing snow and fixing or replacing locks as required.
Canada Post’s Delivery Accommodation Program provides free support to help residential customers with functional limitations access their mail and parcels. More than 17,000 households across the country currently benefit from some form of accommodation.
The program offers accommodations that make mailboxes easier to use, such as sliding trays, Braille features or a more accessible compartment. In some cases, weekly home delivery may be provided on a seasonal, temporary or permanent basis.
Applying is easy and can be done online. For more information or to apply, visit Canada Post’s Delivery Accommodation Program website or call 1-844-454-3009.
While Canadians still value post offices, they are visiting them less frequently and making fewer in-store purchases. This pattern has driven a 30-per-cent drop in retail revenue since 2021. Usage is also uneven across the network.
Retail modernization will help ensure the network reflects how Canadians and communities are using post offices today, while protecting services in rural, remote and Indigenous areas. We’ll start by making changes in urban and suburban areas that are currently over-served.
Canada Post is starting the retail modernization process with market reviews to gather and validate operational data of local post offices, providing the Corporation with an accurate and up-to-date view of each location.
Regions will also be evaluated as a whole so each post office can be viewed through a community lens. The analysis will support the Corporation’s careful evaluation of where changes to the network are most warranted, while prioritizing service to Canadians and protecting it where it’s needed most.
Throughout this process, Canada Post says it will ensure employees, communities, customers, bargaining agents and local officials are kept informed on changes to postal services in their communities.
