u/Alexthegreatbelgian

Postal services and deliveries are a hot topic at the moment. With stuff like bpost dropping services because it's not cost-effective enough.

Now I understand that it's an expensive operation, and that current postal traffic is not what it once was. And even though I'm personally of the opinion that bpost is a service, and should be allowed to operate at a loss as a government service to the population, I understand that cost cutting is an option that is considered in times of austerity.

I honestly wouldn't mind getting mail only a few days each week, or even through a postal point, but for the love of god if that's gonna be the case can we at least do something about the proprietary postal points?

For Bpost I have to go to one supermarket, for PostNL to another one. Godforbid the merchant uses colisprive, UPS or mondial relay because then I need to find a random cornershop two communes further to pick it up because they almost always "fail to deliver" at my own house.

If the government really wants to privatize and streamline postal services, can we please, at least make some general pickup points? Heck they can even be package machines like Bpost already operates but I don't want to have to plan to drive to the Reetveerdegem gazettenwinkel everytime I get a niche package delivery service who can't be bothered to stop at my house.

My in-laws asked for help finding a way to mark their new bikes.

Hadn't done it since university where they had someone come in who did it once or twice every year, so looked up where they could do this. Turns out there's a website from the federal government where you can register and mark your bike. https://mybike.belgium.be/nl/

It's completely free and if you had you bike marked in a previous system you can incorporate that in your new mark.

I don't think I ever saw this advertised but IMHO a pretty solid initiative.