An alert “06880” reader — who requests anonymity, because she still wants to receive packages at her home — says:
I was walking to Sweet Frog the other day, when this UPS driver jerk dangerously cut me off. He drove and parked the wrong way in the 1-way lane — and in the fire lane.
I said, “Hey, did you know this is 1-way, and you cut me off right in front of the frozen yogurt place where children go? This is very dangerous!” He walked away saying, “yeah yeah,” totally dismissing me. So I took this picture, and went back to my car to email it to you explaining what happened.
Well, within a minute a FedEx truck came and did the exact same thing — driving the wrong way in the 1-way lane and parking in the fire lane. Unbelievable! So I took that picture too.
Hey! The US Postal Service mailbox is there — but they were nowhere to be seen. They couldn’t even be bothered to park the wrong way.
No wonder they’re bankrupt.
A friend of mine who worked for a (private) courier service told me, “The UPS guys are told to park wherever they want. If they get a ticket, the company just pays for it. It’s worth it to them.” Gross!! Not to mention the tactic of “dump and run” especially with a damaged box. Unless a signature is required (usually not, lately, I’ve noticed) they just dump stuff, and if it’s broken or messed up they can just deny involvement. Drag. Used to think Fedex was better and more professional, apparently not!
That’s too bad. However, I don’t think behavior like that is limited to UPS and Fed Ex workers. It seems more of a behavior specific to individuals rather than a class of people. To offer a counterpoint, I know the guy who does UPS deliveries in downtown Westport and I observe his driving. He seems considerate and mindful of where and when he parks. He’s also a great guy. It’s the same for the Fed Ex guy who delivers downtown. I’m not excusing the behavior of the people written about in this article. My point is it is more about the individuals than the companies.