January 29, 2013
A decision by Australia Post to stop all counter services at its Kingaroy Delivery Centre has angered local businesspeople.
From February 15, there will be no retail services … ie parcels cannot be weighed and then posted, bulk mail cannot be posted and stamps and other items such as pre-paid envelopes and mailing boxes etc cannot be purchased.
In fact, the only service that will be remaining in the Kingaroy Street building are the keyed post boxes and the two red mailing boxes. And the only contact with postal staff will be a limited parcel pick-up for post box owners, who will be able to use a buzzer on the hatch door to collect parcels if a collection card has been left in their box.
And it’s feared that even this service may be available only during restricted hours.
Kingaroy businesswoman Janelle Frohloff, whose business is located just a few doors down from the Kingaroy Delivery Centre in Kingaroy Street, is angry.
And she’s not the only one. Discussions on Facebook are unanimous in their opposition since the decision became known last Wednesday.
Letters have been written to the Australia Post Area Manager to complain about the decision, and Janelle has begun a petition.
Janelle can’t understand why Australia Post is trying to make life more difficult for small business owners, and why it’s trying to cost them time and money.
She averages $2000 a month in postage charges for her business, Somethings Country, and sometimes makes three or four trips a day to the Kingaroy Street post office with parcels.
Now she will have to drive to Shoppingworld, find a car space and then stand in a queue at the POSTShop.
And every other businessperson in Kingaroy will have to do exactly the same thing, wasting time and money.
Businesspeople with accounts will no longer be able to quickly drop off bulk mail, and employees will be spending time just queueing in the mall.
Janelle said part of the reason why she relocated her business recently from Haly Street to Kingaroy Street was because it would be closer to the Kingaroy Delivery Centre. But this is not the main reason why she is upset.
“The problem is accessibility. If you have a Post Office box and you go to make a pick up, you can’t put in at the same time. We will all have to make two trips or send the staff out twice,” she said.
“And how long will we have to wait in the line?”
She believes local post office staff are unhappy about the decision, although they have been told there will be no job losses.
“We’re already living in the Third World with our internet service, now they’re taking away out post office,” she said.
PS. A similar decision to close the Kingaroy Delivery Centre was defeated by a groundswell of opposition more than 10 years ago.
UPDATE January 30: A Save Our Post Office Facebook group has been started
