Postal Service seeks a contractor to deliver mail to 741 Wasilla boxes through 2030

The Postal Service opened bidding Monday for a contractor to run a Wasilla mail delivery route from Dec. 14 through Sept. 30, 2030, according to a Postal Service notice. Proposals are due at 10 am Mountain Time on Nov. 9, which is 8 am Alaska time.

The route serves about 741 mailboxes daily except Sundays and holidays, using two vehicles with at least 120 cubic feet of load space each. The contractor cases the mail, or sorts it for the route's boxes, at the Wasilla post office from 8 to 10 am before heading out.

Under this kind of contract delivery service, the contractor puts mail in customers' boxes along the route and collects outgoing mail. The contractor may also be required to sell stamps, accept money order applications and handle certified, insured and registered mail. The Postal Service says contractors may be required to live in the community they serve.

The solicitation estimates 12,880.5 miles and 3,788 hours of work a year. The last solicitation for the route, in 2021, was for a term through Sept. 30, 2027. It listed about 650 boxes, one vehicle, 8,182.9 miles and 2,425 hours.

The Postal Service cited urgency in skipping the usual 30-day posting period, as it also did in 2021.

Driver-casers must earn at least $22.24 an hour and light vehicle drivers at least $17.78, plus $5.92 an hour in health and welfare benefits for up to 40 hours a week.

The Postal Service will pick the proposal it judges the best value and says technical factors count more than price. It plans to award the contract at least three days before service begins.