The staff of the Bridgeville Post Office celebrate
their safety recognition.
“
The law of averages says there is an accident every five years.
”
The markers they have hit are phenomenal.
sudden, their kids are going off to college.”
The best part of the job is being outside and
getting to see the countryside, Holl adds. He
often sees deer, hawks and large groups of up
to 20 turkeys crossing the road. “Sometimes
you have to wait because they are crossing at
their own little pace,” he smiles.
Schanbacher has been a mail carrier in
Bridgeville for 35 years and will retire next
year. He says defensive driving is the key to
maintaining a clean safety record.
“You always have to watch out for the
unexpected,” he explains. For example,
Schanbacher knows there’s a blind stop sign
on his route at the intersection of Fawcett
Church Road and Morganza Road. Drivers
often don’t stop at the intersection, especially
if they aren’t familiar with the area. Because
he is always cautious at that intersection, he
just recently avoided an accident.
“There was a car that had to be going 60
miles per hour and flew right through the stop
sign,” Schanbacher says. “If I had pulled out
when I was supposed to, who knows what
would have happened.”
He also enjoys driving through the
countryside but says it can be very difficult
in the winter when the roads have not been
treated. In addition, the mail trucks are also
very hot in the summer because they do not
have air conditioning.
“I just have a fan that blows hot air on me,”
Schanbacher laughs.
The post office truck, officially known as
the Long Life Vehicle, will be phased out
starting in 2018.
“They’re all right, but it’s time for them to
go,” Holl says.
Both Holl and Schanbacher started
delivering the mail in jeeps, before the
LLV was introduced. Schanbacher hopes
the new vehicles will have air conditioning
and Holl wants to have a radio. The new
postal trucks will have back-up cameras,
which Schanbacher says is an important
improvement.
“It’s a great idea because the LLV doesn’t
have windows or anything, so it is very
dangerous to back up,” he explains.
Adams agrees and says the LLV has been
very economic, but the new vehicles will
also make it easier for carriers to deliver mail
without bending over to get parcels. Her sister
is a letter carrier and is excited about the new
vehicles.
“She is not sad to see the LLV go,” Adams
says with a chuckle. n
Chartiers Valley | Fall 2016 | icmags.com 15