NATION : Postal Service Graded at ‘Low B’

The Postal Service delivered about four-fifths of overnight mail on time in its first test by an outside consultant, a performance the postmaster general said today earns the agency a “low B.”

Mail intended for overnight delivery arrived on time 80.61% of the time during a three-month test period that ended in mid-September, the accounting firm of Price Waterhouse reported.

“About as low a B as you can get, that’s how I would characterize it,” Postmaster General Anthony M. Frank said after the monthly meeting of the service’s board of governors.

While the national rating was just over 80%, performance varied widely from place to place, with larger cities such as New York “dragging down” the average. Overnight delivery of mail destined for the Big Apple was on time just 46.94% of the time. Los Angeles fared better at 70.29%.