With the holiday season nearing its peak, the Port Washington Post Office is gearing up to deliver thousands of letters, packages and gifts — and postal officials say they are more prepared than ever.
“The holiday season is the busiest time of year for the Postal Service and one of the most critical opportunities to serve communities in New York,” the U.S. Postal Service said in a press release.
Nationally, the U.S. Postal Service has activated its real-time Holiday Mail Counter, part of a systemwide push to highlight readiness during its busiest time of year. The agency says continued investments in network modernization, technology and delivery standards have strengthened reliability across its 250-year history.
“The Postal Service is prepared to deliver this holiday season reliably, quickly and affordably,” according to the service, noting that the organization has opened hundreds of expanded facilities and deployed new state-of-the-art sorting machines.
Nationwide, USPS now operates 614 package sorting machines, boosting daily processing capacity to 88 million packages, up from 60 million last year.
To support the surge, the Postal Service is also hiring 14,000 temporary employees across the country.
For local carriers like Richard Morales, a 25-year USPS veteran serving Port Washington, the national upgrades reinforce the daily work happening on the ground.
“During the holidays, the mail volume really picks up,” Morales said. “Everyone’s sending packages, Christmas cards and gifts. Our job is to make sure it all gets there on time.”
Port Washington has 35 postal routes covering a mix of single-family homes, condos and cluster boxes. Morales’ route alone includes 338 homes, totaling roughly 22,000 steps, or 9.5 miles, per day.
“It’s nonstop walking from the time I get out of the truck to the time I finish,” he said. “But it’s worth it to see the community get their mail for the holidays.”
Morales uses one of the Postal Service’s newer delivery vans — part of USPS’s long-term fleet modernization — which includes shelving units that allow him to organize letters and packages in precise delivery order.
“Everything is sorted by the order of delivery,” he said. “It helps us handle the holiday rush and get everything where it needs to go.”
USPS continues to emphasize affordability, noting that average delivery times for mail and packages remain under three days, with a 2–3-day turnaround for shipments within the same regional area.
For residents hoping their mail arrives before Christmas, the USPS recommends sending packages by the following deadlines (for delivery within the continental U.S.): USPS Ground Advantage Service: Dec. 17; First-Class Mail Service: Dec. 17; Priority Mail Service: Dec. 18; and Priority Mail Express Service: Dec. 20.
“There’s a deadline for packages and cards,” Morales said. “Following it makes sure your holiday surprises get to your loved ones before the big day.”
For Morales, delivering through the season — rain, sleet or snow — remains a point of pride.
“I’ve known some of my customers for 25 years,” he said. “Being able to deliver for them, especially during the holidays, is very rewarding.”
Local post office hours and holiday resources are available at USPS.com, where customers can also access the live Holiday Mail Counter throughout the season.
