UPS Coverage of All 48 Contiguous States
UPS Coverage of All 48 Contiguous States came in 1975, when United Parcel Service cleared the last regulatory barriers and became the first package delivery company to serve every address in the continental United States.
What happened and why it matters
Nationwide ground coverage made UPS the default parcel carrier for American businesses and set up the zone-based ground service that shippers still use. UPS had spent decades seeking operating rights from the Interstate Commerce Commission and state regulators. The company calls the completed network the Golden Link, and the same year it moved its headquarters to Greenwich, Connecticut, and began service in Canada. Before then, shippers who needed to reach every address relied mainly on Parcel Post. Today a brand can send a ground package from any warehouse to any U.S. address, and that reach is why carrier rate negotiations focus so heavily on ground volume.
People
Related events
Sources
- Our history (UPS) about.ups.com
- United Parcel Service (Encyclopaedia Britannica) britannica.com