Rural mail carriers operating out of Flathead Station in downtown Kalispell will move over to the main post office on Meridian Road, the U.S. Postal Service announced on Monday.

Enacted after a “delivery optimization study,” the cost-saving move takes effect on May 20.

The rural mail carriers will operate out of space left vacant at the Meridian post office after the Postal Service moved Kalispell’s mail-sorting machinery  to Missoula earlier this year as part of a nationwide move to consolidate its mail-sorting operations.

“It saves us some money because it doesn’t require as many supervisory hours and also reduces the number of hours spent sorting mail,” Postal Service spokesman Pete Nowacki said.

“Where it really helps is transportation. Instead of trucking mail to the carriers from the main post office, that all can remain there.”

With the change, it’s not clear if a vacant supervisor position at Flathead Station will be filled or if the position will be cut through attrition.

“It might be one position overall reduced for the city,” Nowacki said.

The Postal Service anticipates little or no change for home and business delivery, though some customers may see mail delivered earlier while others could get mail slightly later.

Flathead Station — located on First Avenue West — will continue to offer the same array of retail, post office box and mail acceptance services. Hours will remain 8:30 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. Monday through Friday and from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. on Saturday.

If a customer has a “Left Notice” article for a certified letter or package for which they must sign, he or she still will be able to retrieve that item at Flathead Station.

“This operational change is just one more way the Postal Service continues to become more efficient, while delivering excellent service to our customers. Our goal is to keep the mail relevant, affordable and growing,” the Postal Service said in a news release about the change.

Reporter Tom Lotshaw may be reached at 758-4483 or by email at tlotshaw@dailyinterlake.com.