It's The Busiest Week Of The Year For The Postal Service. Here Are The 2019 Holiday Shipping Deadlines
BALTIMORE (WJZ) -- The United States Postal Service is now in its busiest week of the year, and with days to go until Christmas, the deadlines for mailing those last-minute gifts is fast approaching.
In the Baltimore area alone, the postal service expects to deliver more than 8 million cards and packages this holiday season, which is well above normal.
"People are getting out shopping more, and they're taking advantage of a lot of the e-commerce sales that are going on," a USPS official told WJZ.
During its busiest week of the year, USPS delivers more than 28 million packages nationwide each day.
To cope with the demand, USPS has hired more workers and expanded service to handle the volume.
Customers visiting the post office on Fayette Street Tuesday told WJZ it was smooth sailing.
Make sure to send by the following dates for expected delivery before the holiday:
- FedEx's shipping deadline for Two-Day Delivery is on December 20.
- UPS's shipping deadline for Three-Day Delivery is on December 19.
- USPS's shipping deadline for First Class Mail is on December 20, while Priority Mail packages need to be sent by December 21 and Priority Mail Express packages need to be sent by December 23.
Customers can also speed up their time in line by coming to the post office with boxes taped up and labels pre-printed.