VIDEOParcel deliverer André Meure and his colleagues are the saviors of Christmas gifts in these dark lockdown days before Christmas. “People welcome me as a hero.”
Marlies van Leeuwen
His delivery van isn’t completely empty today. Because when André Meure, parcel deliverer at PostNL, has made his round through Halfweg – under the smoke of Amsterdam – the niceties that he received from grateful recipients remain. “Today that’s a bar of chocolate, two Christmas cards and a box of Ferrero Rocher,” says Meure happily. “Those people allow you that, I think that’s so nice.”
It’s been extremely busy days before Christmas, with a lockdown rushing into effect this weekend. PostNL is working at full strength and will continue to do so until mid-January. “People can’t go out for Christmas gifts anymore, so they depend on us. My neighborhood welcomes me like a hero, I really do,” says Meure. “And I also try to encourage people. Now you have the children at home and opening the door, I give them a bright orange lanyard. Love them. Lovely to see such a smile from ear to ear.”
Don’t be alarmed, it could be more than 200 packages, with 190 stops. Shoulders down and go
It’s mega-busy. ,,Don’t be alarmed, that could be more than 200 parcels, with 190 stops. Shoulders down and go.” This Monday Meure had extra hands to help him: a student he is training. When the bus is empty, the delivery person does not raise his legs. “Then I call a colleague to see if I can help. We are a team, I always say, we do it together.”
Additional measures
With about 1,500 extra parcel deliverers on the road every day and sorting centers that operate 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, PostNL hopes to provide everyone with their parcels on time in the coming weeks. The company had already taken extra measures due to the large crowds in December. Due to the new lockdown, these measures will be extended until mid-January to absorb the extra crowds.
Since mid-November, in the run-up to Sinterklaas and Black Friday, PostNL has significantly scaled up its parcel delivery capacity. On a normal day, PostNL delivers about 1.1 million parcels per day. During the holiday period, 2 million parcels can be delivered daily. In total, 6500 PostNL deliverers are on the road on peak days.
According to the latest figures, which refer to 2020, PostNL controlled about 55 to 60 percent of the parcel market. DHL follows with 30 to 35 percent, the rest is divided among smaller delivery services. If you’re afraid that your package won’t arrive on time, you don’t have to worry about Meure. “Keep ordering, we’ll get it done.”
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