PS: Post Office Closures Might Hit Dozens to Hundreds of Branches in Slovakia

Bratislava, 23 July (TASR) - The opposition Progressive Slovakia (PS) party held a news conference on Wednesday to point to the closure of post offices that could concern dozens to hundreds of branches in district towns and villages throughout Slovakia in the future. "Next week the government will launch the first stage of scrapping post offices that will affect 26 branches in regional towns and cities all over Slovakia. This stage should be carried out in August and September. It's set to be followed by dozens of post offices in district towns and hundreds of villages throughout Slovakia," stated PS MP Marek Lackovic. According to Lackovic, hundreds of branches from the total number of 1,400 post offices in Slovakia may be at risk. In the case of post offices in smaller towns and villages, people will have to travel kilometres to pay bills, pick up a parcel or send a letter, he said, adding that this will make postal services less available in many locations. "The state should carefully consider which branches it really needs to close and how to compensate for such a loss. Otherwise, this measure will affect practically every village or town - either by losing access to services or by overloading the remaining branches," added Lackovic. PS transport expert Martin Pekar said that the party understands that something needs to be done about loss-making post offices. However, he doesn't view reducing their number as correct without offering alternatives in the form of building a parcel box infrastructure, digitising processes or making post office more efficient. Pekar sees a solution in modern client centres that can offer more services, longer opening hours and comfortable conditions for both people and entrepreneurs. In June, the Slovak Post Office announced the launch of its transformation process, which is focused on optimising its network, streamlining processes, and investing in technology and innovation. It should be completed in 2028. As part of the changes, the Post Office wants to unify the opening hours of its branches, strengthen counters and move branches to shopping malls, where they will be more accessible. ko/df