Does USPS priority still get priority?

[bashort]

Had a buyer in a hurry so I upgraded them to priority shipping.

Going about 300 miles from southern Illinois to Nashville, shipped on 11/10, did not leave my local PO until 11/12 and today arrived in Chicago, 225 miles in the absolute wrong direction. 

Is this now normal for "Priority Shipping" I rarely use it anymore?

I had a item shipped the same day and it also went to Chicago but it was Ground advantage, it left Chicago today but the "Priority" package is still sitting there.

So this is what seasonal price increases and priority shipping get you with the "New" USPS.

[pickapaper]

I can't speak for others who have used Priority recently but my experience has been that it is no longer "priority".  It used to be that you could count on priority packages to be delivered in two days,  but the last three or four packages I have sent via Priority have taken several days to a week to arrive.  It really is no longer faster and also costs more than Ground Advantage so I rarely use Priority any more.   

I vaguely recall reading somewhere that the PO came up with Ground Advantage service because they got tired of busting their butts to get all the Priority packages delivered in two days.  GA is a little cheaper and the packages still get delivered in a few days so people were okay with that.  Personally, I'm happy with GA and don't miss using Priority. 

[slati_2013]

It used to be two to three days. Sometimes it really is. Most times it is three to five days. And if you get a "on its way but arriving late" it could be several days or a few weeks. What is amazing is the package gets to the destination city in two days and then just dies there or heads again out of state. 

[bonanza125]

Shipping time varies now even with priority mail. Whenever a buyer messages me about time frame I aways tell them it varies and I can't guarantee exact time. If they need to item within days don't buy it online. Find it local.

[albertabrightalberta]

My own experience in comparing Priority mail to (current) Ground Advantage and (previous) First Class parcel as been that there's no difference in the speed of delivery. I've never found PM to be any faster than GA or FC. 

[mr.emk]

You dropped it off at P.O. on Monday, the 10th.   Tuesday, the 11th was Veterans Day.  P.O. closed for a Federal holiday.  On Wednesday, the 12th, they went back to work and forwarded your package.    

[relicpeddler]

I have been seeing that tour the country stuff from USPS a lot.  I've had more then a handful this year. If you ask your postmaster they say it just got dropped into the wrong bin.  Don't mater if it's Priority or Ground Advantage. 

[tobaccocardyahoo]

The last changes to USPS operations which apply to POs more than 50 miles from a distribution hub (60% of all POs), limit the trips from the PO to the distribution center to once a day.

That has affected all classes of mail. 

My PO has that trip in late morning.

The PO picks up my packages in late afternoon.

By the time the origin scan is performed it is the next day or the day after.

I do not offer PM, I only offer GA, my shipments everywhere take longer. Though coastal shipments are faster than inland shipments. I am on the New England Coast. Faster to California than Illinois.

I have set my handling time longer to avoid missing expectations. Nothing I sell is necessary and should not be an urgent shipment. If a buyer has an urgent need, I do my best to discourage him from buying from me.

[simba6]

It used to arrive a day or two sooner.  Not so much anymore.  It seems to run neck and neck with ground advantage.

[dhbookds]

Airlines screwed up because of shut down.....

[bashort]

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@mr.emk wrote:

You dropped it off at P.O. on Monday, the 10th.   Tuesday, the 11th was Veterans Day.  P.O. closed for a Federal holiday.  On Wednesday, the 12th, they went back to work and forwarded your package.    

---

yes I understand that it was a holiday but a few years ago that package would of left on the 10th and while it would not of got delivered on a holiday it would of still have been moving on the holiday.

Meanwhile USPS is out delivering Amazon packages on Sunday for a stupendously low price I assume. 

[duffy4444]

   I'm waiting for Priority Mail to go the way of the dodo bird, except for maybe PM Express. I posted a thought about this here last year, and I suspect regular PM might soon go away with GA appearing to be just as fast or maybe even faster.

   I have PM as an option in all of my listings, but I've had only one buyer take me up on it the last 3 years. I think I'll be dropping the PM option in all my new listings, and maybe even remove the option from my current listings if I have the time (yeah, right!).

Cheers, Duffy

[mozartbach1971]

I think the closer the location is to you, the shipping times get closer together between the two.  I've noticed that when I ship something close to my address the prices are very close to each other. Sometimes I've noticed sending it Priority was cheaper if you factored in the free priority mail box you get.

[jasoheat_0]

i shipped a record player ( dropped of to the usps office ) from atlanta to orlando using priority shipping with USPS , it went to chicago then to several other states , it took two weeks , ( FYI scanning did not show for over a week , i had to open a case ) i will never use priority again , USPS is like other corporate site you pay more for less 

[meme6253]

It doesn't seem like it does it, I had 3 orders ship out the same day, Different parts of the country, One Media mail, One Ground advantage & one Priority with delivery confirmation, The last one to arrive was the Priority, Go figure.