Australia Post parcel’s 12,000km trip across country to destination just two hours away
Though it was meant to go just two hours up north in WA, the item ended up heading to Queensland three days after being sent.
An express parcel meant to be delivered a short two-hour drive away has had the trip of it's life after ending up on a 12,000km journey across Australia.
Australia Post had received the small parcel in Geraldton, WA, on Friday October 6 three days later it had ended up on the other side of the country in transit to Cairns, QLD, without any information on where it could be going next.
"[We] called after we saw the tracking of it going to Cairns and all they said was that 'when there are many parcels it can sometimes show up incorrectly'," customer, Sharif Ahmed, told Yahoo News Australia.
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The journey of a long lost parcel
Sharif was sending a parcel to Kalbarri Police station containing a prepaid return bag inside it so that his wife's handbag, which had been handed in to police the day before, could be sent back to their home.
Though Kalbarri is only two hours north of Geraldton, three days after it was handed in for posting the parcel mysteriously ended up on it's way to Cairns.
From there it flew around Queensland some more, to Bungalow, then to Brisbane, and then all the way back to Perth, WA, before finally arriving in Kalbarri on it's seventh day in transit.
Sharif was infuriated at the lack of "efficiency" and clarity on where his parcel was going. "We didn't get given much information why [it was going to QLD] and haven't heard anything since," Sharif said.
Parcel still somehow arrived within 5 business days
Both express and normal shipping between Geraldton and Kalbarri takes an estimated 3-5 business days, but Sharif had paid extra for express shipping so that it could be prioritised.
Despite the parcel arriving later than expected, it still made it within the estimated time frame due to being sent before a weekend.
"The vast majority of items delivered by Australia Post make it to their destination safely. In this instance, the parcel has taken an extended route but we’re pleased to advise it was safely delivered within the estimated delivery timeframe," an Australia Post spokesperson told Yahoo News Australia.
Not the first well-travelled parcel
Earlier this year the tracking info for one particular parcel contained a whopping 80 entries, going from Sunshine West in Victoria and then hopping between multiple states for at least another two months.
"We encourage customers experiencing delivery issues to get in touch with us directly by calling 13 POST (13 7678) so we can provide help and support," an Australia Post spokesperson said.
AusPost carbon footprint
Australia Post have a giant carbon footprint due to using planes and other fuel-powered machines to get parcels from A to B, and have a target of reducing their carbon emissions by 15 per cent by 2025.
With some parcels taking such a long and unnecessary trip, there are concerns about the carbon footprint they leave behind.
Just recently, AusPost shared news of an impending switch to electronic missed delivery cards which will save around 667 tonnes of CO2 emissions each year.
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