BARTON MP Nickolas Varvaris had a busy day as one of Australia Post's community "listening posts" on Wednesday, November 19.
It was his job to spend time at Arncliffe, Rockdale and Kogarah post offices alongside Australia Post staff to listen to what the community thought about the postal service and to dispel myths and explain changes.
He said there was some confusion, but the public was generally OK about the service they were getting.
Some were worried there would be more post office closures and that mail would only be delivered three days a week.
Many, like Trevor Rice, of Monterey, said Australia Post was "A1 across the board".
Australia Post regional manager Stephen Price said the postal service was at a turning point, where it had to alter some services to balance parcel profits with letter losses.
With the help of online shopping, the parcel service was booming whereas post delivery staff often travelled to streets every day to deliver one letter.
Mr Price said they were seeking to introduce a two-speed letter service for all customers. This would give senders a choice between a priority-speed service delivered five days a week and a regular-speed service, which would be cheaper and delivered to a slower timetable — one to two days longer.
"We also need pricing freedoms to ensure the price of the stamp covers the actual cost of delivery," he said.
The price of concession stamps for concession card-holders will remain frozen until 2017.
Do you have concerns about the altered postal system?
