a239  1323  27 Jan 77
AM-Electronic Mail, Bjt, 390
By JEFFERY MILLS
Associated Press Writer
    WASHINGTON (AP) - Transmitting letters electronically from city to
city rather than carrying them physically could help the
deficit-plagued U.S. Postal Service cut costs and improve service, a
government-sponsored study reported Thursday.
    The National Academy of Sciences commil
ort recommo the
Postal Service develop limited electronic message services and assess
whether the public reaction warrants a nationwide system.
    ''Time is running out for the Postal Service. While it delays its
entry into electronic message services, developments by private firms
are sure to proceed, possibly foreclosing any opportunities for the
al Service to move into the field in any meaningful way,'' the
report said.
    Under an electronic mail system, messages could be transmitted
electronically between post offices and a printed copy then delivered
to the recipient. Electronic transmission would eliminate the cost of
sorting letters and transporting them.
    The Postal Service, which is $2.8 billion in the red, is considering
establishing electronic mail service but has made no decision. The
service's future currently is under study by a special commission,
which will recommend options to Congress by March 15. 
    The Academy of Sciences study, commissioned by the Postal Service,
expressed doubt whether the service could meet the nation's future
mail needs if it continues to handle all mail as it now does.
    ''By maintaining the status quo, it is unlikely that the Postal
Service can be run as a modern, self-sustaining enterprise, without
continually raising rates or sacrificing service. The postal system is
at a turninb point,'' the report said.
    The report said electronic mail is ' neither a panacea nor a
guaranteed solution'' to the Postal System's current problems but said
it does offer an opportunity to halt rising postal rates, declining
use of the mail and increasing deficits.
    The committee said technologies likely to be used for electronic
mail within the next 10 to 15 years are already available or in
development. But it added that current Postal Service spending for
research and development was ''grossly inadequate'' for it to
undertake an electronic mail service.
    ''Postal Service top management needs to adopt a firm and continuing
commitment to involvement in the electronic message field. The
commitment that is called for is the same type of conviction in the
eventual success of the project that was prevalent within the top
management of the National Aeronautics and Space Administration for
the manned space program in the 1960s,'' the report said.
    
1623pED 01-27
***************