Passports In Post Offices?

I just got back from standing in line again with about 20 people in our main post office. There were 7 windows and 3 clerks on duty - two of them were issuing passports - get the picture? I know cost cutting and all but is that a national practice or bad local judgement. They closed the separate passport office in our post office. I've almost decided to take my business mail to a branch post office to avoid passports.

Our town doesn't even have a post office (we have a population of over 41,000 btw) and the nearest post office stopped doing passports years ago. There are usually only two windows open and the line is frequently 25+. I have stood 30 minutes at times.

I don't know if that makes our situation better or worse than yours ...

An aside though: bad as ebay can be, I thank the lord daily for the function that enables printing mailing labels at home. Imagine if all THOSE parcels were in line at the PO too.

My situation was further frustrated by the Supervisor (Postmaster?) walking along behind the three people who had windows open like a prison guard. It was all I could do to not yell out "Get your &*^% in a window!" I decided if I said that someone from Homeland Security would drag me away.

Big city post offices are a real pain. Fortunately, I have a little post office just a couple of miles from my home and it's "crowded" if one person other than myself might be in there at the same time. No lines. No waiting. Free parking right in front. Most all of the new issues stamps, too.

It's not even on the post office closure list (not yet, anyway).

In ALL of the local Post Offices around here their are signs that say you MUST make an appointment for Passports! They only do them 2 days a week. I have seen people get turned away without appointments. As for staffing I would write to the P.M. General's Office in DC. It may not help, but it couldn't hurt!

BTW: I have seen the Asst. Postmaster get behind a window if the lines are very long. I guess I'm just lucky. I hope it stays that way!