WELLSBORO — Households outside Wellsboro were surprised last Wednesday to see their mail delivered in a Ghostbusters van.
Rural carrier Christopher Neal purchased the 1996 Nissan Caravan to deliver mail to households along his 65-mile route serving the Hills Creek area.
Rural carriers, said Neal, must provide their own vehicle. The Wellsboro Post Office has four government vehicles and uses six personal vehicles. Because mailboxes are located on the edge of the road, it is easier to operate a vehicle with a right hand drive, meaning the driver is sitting on the right side of the vehicle instead of the left.
So when Neal saw the vehicle in an online sale, he snatched it up.
“It’s fun; it’s got lots of character,” he said.
He put it into service immediately, after checking with police to make sure it’s legal to drive. Yes it is, police said, so long as he covers the ambulance signs on the vehicle body. Neal can even use the lights instead of blinkers when traveling at low speed.
No problem. With the ambulance signs covered but the Ghostbuster logos intact, he drove off into, if not the sunset, then a regular day on the job.
Well, not quite an ordinary day. The new mail delivery vehicle elicited lots of curious glances, a couple of calls to the post office and even a video of it at work made the rounds on social media.
While that’s kind of cool and entertaining, the important part is that the new vehicle runs great, handles well, gives Neal’s tired, mileage-heavy Subaru a break and has plenty of space for packages during the holiday rush.
“If I can brighten someone’s day, that’s cool,” he said.
