Duties of city and rural carriers are very similar. Most travel established routes delivering and collecting mail. Mail carriers start work at the post office early in the morning, where they spend a few hours arranging their mail in delivery sequence and taking care of other details. Recently, automated equipment has begun to be used to sort most of the mail for city and rural carriers, allowing them to spend less time sorting and more time delivering mail. This sorting equipment should be used in most post offices by 1998.
Carriers cover their routes on foot, by vehicle, or a combination of both.
On foot, they carry a heavy load of mail in a satchel or push it in a cart. In some urban and most rural areas, they use a car or small truck. Although the Postal Service provides vehicles to city carriers, most rural carriers use their own automobiles. Besides delivering and collecting mail, carriers collect money for postage-due and c.o.d. If a customer is not home, the carrier leaves a notice that tells where special mail is being held.