Blocked mailboxes could also block postal delivery

Question: My husband recently started working nights so has been parking on the street during the day. Our mail carrier left a note on his windshield that said on-street parking is prohibited within 30 feet of a curbside mailbox. Our neighbor’s mailbox is curbside but ours is on the house side of the sidewalk so he would have to get out of his truck to access it. We park in that same spot all the time evenings and weekends and oftentimes cars park there during the day. Is the prohibition cited punishable with a ticket? If so, are there specific hours this type of parking is prohibited?

Answer: There is no state or city law restricting parking in front of mailboxes.

However, the U.S. Postal Service has its own policy and may not deliver mail if a mailbox is consistently blocked.

Your carrier referenced a previously used guideline.

“There is no current postal policy that absolutely prohibits parking within 30 feet of a mailbox,” said USPS spokesman Duke Gonzalez.

However, customers are asked keep access to mailboxes clear of all vehicles and obstructions, Gonzalez said. “Our official policy is that customers are responsible for keeping the approaches to their mailboxes clear to facilitate delivery.”

If the approach to a curbside mailbox is temporarily blocked by a parked vehicle during normal delivery hours, a mail carrier normally will leave the vehicle to make a delivery, he said.

“If the carrier continually experiences a problem in serving curbline boxes and where the customer is able to control on-street parking in front of his or her mailbox but does not take prompt corrective action after being properly notified, a postmaster may withdraw delivery service,” Gonzalez said.

But before that happens, he said every effort would be made to investigate the circumstances and to work out a mutually agreed upon solution with the customer.

Gonzalez advises you to communicate with your carrier and/or to contact the postmaster of the Pearl City Post Office, at 453-0111, to work out a solution.

Question: I recently went to have my auto inspected under the new safety inspection process mentioned last month. Afterward, the tech who installed the safety sticker on my bumper said, “Don’t use detergent when you wash the bumper or the lettering on the decal will wash off.” True or false?

Answer: False, said Sheri Kajiwara, director of the city Department of Customer Services.

“The thermal imprinted stickers that are used for the new safety check stickers were required to be independently lab tested,” she said. “They are certified to not fade after repeated car washings for over a year with standard detergents.”

However, it is not recommended that solvents meant to remove oils and grease, such as paint thinner, turpentine or acetone, be used directly on the sticker, because stickers will not hold up well to those types of harsh chemicals, she said.

Anyone receiving such “misinformation” is advised to call the Division of Motor Vehicles at 532-7793 and identify the stations. “We will work to educate them,” Kajiwara said.

MAHALO

To a good Samaritan and brave man. We were driving on the H-2 freeway toward the North Shore just before the Mililani exit on Veterans Day when we heard a sickening crash. We pulled to the shoulder and saw our bike rack dragging, with my husband’s bike attached and broken. My bike had fallen about 150 feet back onto the middle of the highway. As we hurried toward my bike, we saw a small dark car with red flags on its roof had stopped, protecting it from oncoming traffic and protecting oncoming traffic from colliding with the bike. To our amazement, a tall, slender man with short dark hair picked up the bike and risked his life running with it to the shoulder where he left it and then risked his life again running back to his car before taking off. He was not only a good Samaritan but also a very brave man, and we thank him. — Sally and Dave Hall

MAHALO

To the gentleman who kindly provided me with Band-Aids and cream for the blister on my foot on Veterans Day near Diamond Head. Such small kindnesses go a long way, better than any coupon the Hawaii tourist bureau could issue. — Monica Hird

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