I just witnessed a mailman driving her truck down 2818 from the passenger seat. The kicker is the stearing wheel is on the left just like a regular vehicle.

Is this Legal?! I sure as heck can't be safe!

are you sure they didn't also have a steering wheel on the right side?

She was leaning over holding the steering wheel about to make a left turn from Villa Maria onto 2818

Over here, they barely even look before pulling out into traffic. I just treat them like pedestrians...look for them before they look for you. It saves their lives and my insurance.

I've seen it before too. CRAZY!
What color was the truck?

We live outside of town and our mail is delivered by a rural mail carrier.

They drive like this every day.

quote:

---

We live outside of town and our mail is delivered by a rural mail carrier.

They drive like this every day.

---

This. Almost every rural delivery person drives their own car and uses their left foot for gas and brake. How they get away with it I have no idea.

Perhaps a yellow flashing light on top of the vehicle is all that's required to drive a vehicle from the passenger seat of a car.

I think they are supposed to have a 'US Postal' sign in the back window. We once had a carrier with a right-drive car, but all others just drive from the passenger side. Worst place to come up on one is a hoghway likw FM 2154

The mail carrier in Castlegate drives a minivan from the passenger seat side (reaching over to the steering wheel on the driver's side). I'm not sure if he has a Postal sign on the back or not.

quote:

---

We live outside of town and our mail is delivered by a rural mail carrier.

They drive like this every day.

---

+2

And out here you get to know your postal delivery person.

I live in town and it's still rural mail delivery. Don't know who they are though as they deliver while I'm at work. There are good about driving in my grass though. <angry face>

I wonder if most mail delivery around here is contracted out?

[This message has been edited by dave99ag (edited 1/27/2011 2:15p).]

They do make passenger side steering wheel setups. Some of the mailmen have them but many do not. It's scary.

quote:

---

She was leaning over holding the steering wheel about to make a left turn from Villa Maria onto 2818

---

left turn = greater level of difficulty.

I did that once many years ago, I'll never ArmorAll a vinyl seat again either.

I asked the postman in our neighborhood if he thought driving backwards in the right lane was dangerous even if he could reach the box easier, he said "it is safer than driving from the passenger seat".

I'm as amazed by this as I was by the "revelation" that there is chlorine in tap water.

I thought TexAgs knew stuff.

Wouldn't the best solution be for the USPS to realize that many of the subdivisions they service are no longer rural routes and provide the delivery personnel with real mail trucks?

During a time where tons of rural post offices are being shut down and the possibility of tons more on the horizon, its probably not likely that will happen. As I understand it, the USPS is operating at a huge deficit.

Are you willing to pay more for mail delivery JR?

Mine drives a right hand drive Cherokee with some extra cooling fans slapped on the front of it to help with all that stop and go.

Oh man I thought I was being a ninja... haha Rock if it was a white truck which I am sure it was it was me. It is really not that hard to drive like that my steering wheel and pedals are the left side. I have been doing this for 11 yrs now so I am really good at it.

BS. Get a properly equipped vehicle.

You cant call BS on me! I do it everyday.

Well, be careful. Id hate for you to cause/be in an accident because of it. Thanks for delivering our mail.

I've seen this in smaller communities all over the state. It's nothing new. They have to use their own vehicles.

I will be very careful Thank you! And if you ever need anthing let me know. I am here to serve everyone that lives on my route.

I live in a subdivision in the Bryan city limits and my mail ladies both drive their own cars. One day my husband happened to be home and saw them come and said "some woman in a mini van just put something in our mailbox". I was like, "Yeah, that's the mail lady!". He couldn't believe that they didn't have official mail trucks. I see them all the time so it doesn't seem strange to me anymore.

My aunt is a rural carrier in another town and has driven from the right side for over 15 years. The cost to convert is way too much for most of these carriers to afford. She had to have back surgery last year after years of leaning to drive and stretching her legs to reach the gas and brake pedal.