Canada Post mailboxes are disappearing in Burlington. What’s up with that?

Have you noticed that Canada Post mailboxes have disappeared from several Burlington locations?

It’s been the topic on social media channels and local online chat groups where residents have complained that it’s become increasingly difficult to mail a letter.

“Where do I go to mail something these days?” wrote one member in a Facebook group. “The mailboxes are all gone. It’s not like it used to be.”

Many say the mailboxes are being taken away from storefronts and drug stores that double as post offices.

Recent removals include the box that was in front of Home Hardware at Appleby Mall, while others are no longer in front of Shoppers Drug Mart/post offices on Headon Road and Plains Road and at No-Frills on Brant Street.

According to a representative from Canada Post, there are a variety of reasons why mailboxes are no longer where they used to be.

“We have checked with local operations and confirmed that there have been some street letter boxes that have been removed as they were damaged and unrepairable,” explained Lisa Liu, a media relations officer for Canada Post.

Liu went on to say that letter boxes will be reinstalled at some locations, but she did not indicate where.

However, there is a plan to permanently eliminate some boxes.

“Canada Post also regularly reviews the use of street letter boxes,” Liu continued. “Some street letter boxes may have also be removed in the area due to decreased usage and decreased volumes of outgoing mail and parcels.”

As some residents point out, increasingly mailboxes are also being vandalized or being used as garbage bins.

“I had a fight with some guy because he used it (mailbox) to dump his dog poop,” a Reddit user claimed. “He had the decency to clean up after his dog, but then he puts it in the mailbox…unbelievable.”

However, most believe that mailboxes will suffer the same fate as telephone booths as shifts in consumer habits see less of a reliance on traditional services.

As recent as yesterday the chair of Canada Post’s board of directors admitted the Crown corporation’s operation was financially unsustainable as customers now rely on email and texting to deliver messages and have parcels shipped to them directly by low-cost operators.

Canada Post says if customers have questions regarding service, they can contact Canada Post’s Customer Service team online at canadapost.ca/support or by telephone at 1-866-607-6301 (TTY: 1-800-267-2797).