Canada Post changes Peace region postal codes to assist delivery accuracy

FORT ST. JOHN, B.C. — Canada post recently changed three Fort St. John region routes from the Rural Addressing system to a Civic Addressing with postal codes unique to the delivery sites.

This change began on September 12th and affected approximately 3,500 customers in Fort St. John and post office box holders in Charlie Lake.

There have been reports of residents being frustrated with these changes due to mail arriving late and long lines at the Canada Post office.

According to Lisa Liu with Canada Post, the change was done to optimize and manage mail delivery routes.

Affected customers were assigned a new community mailbox compartment as Canada Post re-orders the sites in alpha-numeric order.

Liu says Canada Post consulted with the municipality to outline the project, as well as sent out “several” letters directly to customers over the past six months.

These letters reportedly explained the change and requested information to provide mail-forwarding services for 12 months at no charge.

New keys and information about these mailboxes were delivered to customers halfway through August.

She says that postal code changes do not happen often, and they reportedly go to great lengths not to change them.

Updates may be required for various reasons, such as supporting community growth or delivery route adjustments.

This program has reportedly been implemented across the country in several regions for a few years. It matches the physical address to the mailing address, which gives customers one consistent address, and Liu says this helps Canada Post’s efficiency and accuracy.

Civic addresses also assist 911 emergency responders.

If Canada Post customers have questions regarding their postal services, Canada Post’s Customer Service team can be contacted at canadapost.ca/support or by calling 1-866-607-6301 or TTY at 1-800-267-2797.