(Image: Ray Duff)
The familiar sight of the traditional red pillar box is beginning to change across Folkestone as Royal Mail rolls out its multi-million-pound modernization scheme, which introduces solar-powered, parcel-ready postboxes to the town.
The introduction of these new “postboxes of the future,” designed to adapt to the boom in online shopping, has been welcomed by many for its convenience but is also sparking debate over the gradual disappearance of historic street furniture.
The new installations, which are part of a nationwide rollout of 3,500 high-tech units, feature a solar panel on the lid that powers a built-in barcode scanner. Customers can use the Royal Mail app to scan a pre-labelled parcel, which then activates a drop-down drawer, allowing packages up to the size of a shoebox to be posted—a service previously only available at Post Office branches or collection points.
A Royal Mail spokesperson confirmed that the change in infrastructure is essential for securing the future of the postal service. “The way Britain sends and receives mail has fundamentally changed,” the spokesperson stated. “We are all sending more parcels than ever before, and this upgrade ensures that 98% of UK addresses remain within half a mile of a convenient parcel drop-off point. While we are retiring some older, lower-usage pillar boxes to make way for this new network, the overall goal is to maximize choice and convenience for our customers.”
However, the removal of some older, traditional postboxes in quieter residential areas has caused concern among local history enthusiasts and some elderly residents.
Folkestone resident, Ray Duff expressed disappointment saying: “Whilst some post boxes were not used very much, it is for many people very disconcerting to not have such, especially if they do not have a mobile phone or other digital access or have to walk so much further to find an in use pillar box!”
The company maintains that the new boxes still retain a standard letter slot and will be placed in locations carefully chosen to ensure maximum accessibility, integrating the new technology seamlessly into the existing 115,000-strong national postbox network. Folkestone is expected to see the bulk of the replacement and decommissioning work completed over the next few months.