By AARON MUELLER
Niles Daily Star

Joe Kebschull was not surprised when he heard that the United States Postal Service will propose cutting Saturday delivery.

“It’s not a shock,” Kebschull, the Niles branch postmaster said of the announcement. “With my foresight into it, I could see it coming. But nothing formal has come out. It’s nothing but conversation at this point.”

Kebschull said he has yet to determine his opinion on the proposal, claiming he sees both sides of the issue.

“I could see it being very beneficial for the postal service, considering the reduction in mail in the system,” Kebschull said.

Mail volume in the USPS declined 12.7 percent in the 2009 fiscal year. That decline in volume led to a $297 million first quarter loss in 2010.

The postal service may also consider closing branches to help get out of its massive debt.

Although USPS cut 40,000 employees last year, the Niles branch hasn’t seen any staff cuts and Kebschull doesn’t expect any in the near future.

The Niles branch did implement route adjustments Saturday due to the plunge in mail volume, causing many residents to have different delivery times.

Kebschull, who has only been interim postmaster for about a week, does not have any statistics on just how much the amount of mail has decreased.

But he did point out a few factors that have caused the plunge.

“I would assume electronic commerce and correspondence play a major part,” he said. “I don’t know if the trend continues, but I certainly hope not.”