DOCKET NO. R2005-1
City Carrier Street Time Study – Volume Datasets
USPS LR-K-80
This is a Category 2 Library Reference sponsored by Witness Stevens
(USPS-T-15).
Table of Contents
I.
Introduction……………….……………………………………………………...1
II.
The CCSTS Volume Datasets ………………………………………………...1
II.
Definitions of Variables on the Volume Datasets………………………….2
The data files that are discussed in this library reference, and that are stored on
the CD that is attached to this library reference are as follows:
AL161ZIPS.PRN
PA159.PRN
i
I. Introduction
This library reference is sponsored by Witness Stevens (USPS-T-15), and it
documents the volume datasets produced by the City Carrier Street Time Study
(CCSTS). These datasets were later merged with the CCSTS scan-time dataset into
the database that witness Bradley (USPS-T-14) used to estimate delivery-time
regression equations.
Other testimonies and library references that describe the development of the
data used in this library reference are:
USPS-T-16 (Witness Kelley) for the design of the sample used in the City Carrier
Street Time Study (CCSTS).
USPS-T-5 (Witness Harahush) for a description of the city-carrier frame used to
select the FY 2004 CCCS sample.
II. The CCSTS Volume Datasets
The volume data collected during the May-June 2002 CCSTS were organized
into two files. The first – AL161ZIPS.PRN – contains 40,668 Zip-date-route records of
volumes for delivery-point-sequenced (DPS) letters, non-DPS (i.e., cased) automation
letters, non-DPS (i.e., cased) non-automation (i.e., “other”) letters, cased flats, and
sequenced mail volumes. These volumes were reported for 3,668 routes located in 161
of the CCSTS ZIP Codes. 137 of these 161 ZIP Codes recorded these volumes on
“DOIS” and “DSIS” reports, while 24 reported volumes on non-DOIS/DSIS forms. The
DSIS reports were from a series of data analyses and reports produced by the Postal
Service’s PC-based “Decision Support Information System,” which was designed to
assist delivery unit supervisors in daily planning and management of carriers’ office and
street-time activities. At the time the CCSTS was conducted (May-June 2002), DSIS
was being replaced by DOIS (the Delivery Operations Information System), which is a
more powerful Web-based information platform that calculates daily carrier mail
volumes by workload characteristic (DPS/non-DPS, letter/flat, sequenced/nonsequenced), and that uses these volumes, along with possible delivery points by type,
and data on available carrier hours, to estimate workloads by route and to effectively
1
allocate carrier hours across routes. During the CCSTS study period, DOIS had not yet
been deployed to the 24 ZIP Codes that used non-DOIS/DSIS forms to report letters,
flats, and sequenced mail volumes.
The table below shows an extract from the AL161ZIPS.PRN file.
ROUTE
DPS
LETTERS
NON-DPS,
AUTOMATION
LETTERS
NON-DPS,
OTHER
LETTERS
CASED
FLATS
SEQUENCED
MAIL
05/28/02
01
0
2440
227
1466
0
1113.12
05/28/02
02
0
2838
170
1208
521
1113.12
05/28/02
03
0
0
0
0
0
1113.12
05/28/02
04
0
2043
171
1150
0
1113.12
05/28/02
05
0
2384
170
1208
0
1113.12
05/29/02
01
0
624
170
460
480
1113.12
05/29/02
02
0
624
170
460
0
1113.12
05/29/02
03
0
0
0
0
0
1113.12
05/29/02
04
0
1022
114
431
543
1113.12
05/29/02
05
0
651
114
489
361
1113.12
05/30/02
01
0
1362
114
230
0
1113.12
05/30/02
02
0
1135
114
201
0
1113.12
05/30/02
03
0
0
0
0
0
1113.12
05/30/02
04
0
851
114
172
0
1113.12
05/30/02
05
0
1305
227
315
0
1113.12
05/31/02
01
0
1078
170
484
480
1113.12
05/31/02
02
0
1135
171
547
521
1113.12
05/31/02
03
0
0
0
0
0
1113.12
05/31/02
04
0
1135
171
489
543
1113.12
05/31/02
05
0
1078
171
604
361
1125.12
05/18/02
01
700
0
143
307
0
1125.12
05/18/02
02
776
0
553
435
0
1125.12
05/18/02
03
856
0
292
215
0
1125.12
05/18/02
04
742
0
314
222
0
1125.12
05/18/02
05
828
0
156
347
0
1125.12
05/18/02
06
981
0
353
460
0
MASKED
ZIP CODE
DATE
1113.12
Other, specially-designed data-collection forms were used by CCSTS ZIP Codes
to report volumes by ZIP Codes, date, and route for small parcels, large (i.e., deviation)
parcels, accountables, bulk deliveries, and mail collected at customer delivery points.
These parcel- accountable and collection volumes were recorded by ZIP Code, date,
2
and route on the second of the two CCSTS volume files – PA159.PRN - which contains
47,532 records reported for 3,501 routes across 159 CCSTS ZIP Codes. The table
below shows an extract of these parcel-accountable-collection records. (See Section III
(b) below for definitions of the variables in the first row).
ROUTE
NUMBER
DEVIATION
PARCELS
SMALL
PARCELS
ACCOUNTABLES
BULK
DEL
SL
FT
SL
INCHS
ML
FT
ML
INCHS
SF
FT
SF
INCHS
MF
FT
MF
INCHS
EXPRESS
PRIORITY
OTHR
PACK
01
5
23
4
6
10
0
3
0
0
3
0
9
0
2
4
02
11
30
1
0
0
9
0
6
0
0
0
0
0
0
1
03
0
18
1
0
0
3
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
04
0
25
1
0
1
6
0
0
0
6
0
0
0
0
0
05
16
22
3
1
0
9
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
06
19
26
0
1
0
6
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
07
18
19
1
0
0
15
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
08
29
18
0
0
0
6
0
0
0
1
0
0
0
0
0
09
14
55
4
1
1
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
10
15
22
2
0
0
6
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
11
0
28
3
0
0
9
0
3
0
0
0
1
0
1
2
12
40
23
7
1
1
0
2
0
1
0
1
6
0
3
3
13
0
34
2
0
0
6
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
14
12
35
2
0
3
0
0
0
0
3
0
0
0
0
3
15
25
12
1
0
1
0
0
6
0
6
0
6
0
2
4
01
14
21
1
4
9
3
4
3
0
6
0
6
0
7
1
02
10
20
3
0
0
6
0
9
0
0
0
0
0
0
1
03
0
6
2
0
0
3
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
04
1
15
1
0
2
0
0
0
0
6
0
0
0
0
0
05
9
10
2
0
1
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
06
13
12
0
1
0
3
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
07
8
21
1
0
0
6
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
08
9
12
1
0
0
6
0
0
0
1
0
0
0
0
0
09
7
10
1
1
1
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
10
7
14
3
0
0
3
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
11
0
20
2
0
0
9
0
6
0
0
0
1
0
0
0
12
11
42
1
1
3
9
2
0
0
0
0
9
0
3
15
As explained in more detail in LR-K-81, these two volume files were later merged
with the scan-time dataset produced by the CCSTS (see LR-K-79). The combined
dataset was aggregated to the ZIP Code-date level, and then used to estimate the
delivery-time regression equations.
3
III. Definitions of Variables on the Volume Datasets
a. The variables on the AL161ZIPS.PRN volume file are as follows:
Zip – the 5-digit ZIP Code
Date – the test date on which the volumes were recorded
Rteno – the route number of the route on which the volumes were delivered
Dpsl – total DPS letters
Cal – total non-DPS (i.e., cased) automation letters
Cnl – total non-DPS (i.e., cased) non-automation letters
Cf – total cased flats
Seq – total sequenced mail volumes
b. The variables on the PA159.PRN volume file are as follows:
Zip – the 5-digit ZIP Code
Date – the test date on which the volumes were recorded
Rteno – the route number of the route where the volumes were delivered and collected
Pcl – total large (i.e., deviation) parcels
Sprs – total small parcels
Act – total accountables
Blk – total bulk deliveries
Slf – total feet of stamped letters collected at customer delivery points
Sli - total inches of Stamped letters collected at customer delivery points
Mlf – total feet of metered letters collected at customer delivery points
Mli – total inches of metered letters collected at customer delivery points
Sff – total feet of stamped flats collected at customer delivery points
Sfi – total inches of stamped flats collected at customer delivery points
Mff – total feet of metered flats collected at customer delivery points
Mfi – total inches of metered flats collected at customer delivery points
Exp – total pieces of Express Mail collected at customer delivery points
Pri – total pieces of Priority Mail collected at customer delivery points
Othp – total pieces of all “Other Packages” collected at customer delivery points
4