A Canada Post mail carrier delivers packages in Montreal in November, 2024.Christinne Muschi/The Canadian Press

In a roundabout way, making Canadians go down the street to get their mail could leave downtowns nicer places to walk. But don’t count on cashing that cheque because it might not come through.

Ottawa has proposed the end of home mail delivery in response to major budget problems at Canada Post. Moving the last four million households still getting mail to their door to centralized community mailboxes – the reality already for three-quarters of Canadian homes – is projected to save $400-million annually.

Some of that money should be earmarked for making sure the new pickup spots fit properly into dense city centres. Because the change is not without risk. Done wrong it will shrink further the miserly amount of space allotted to urban pedestrians – and may lead to breaches of accessibility law. If done right, though, it will preserve space for walking while also making city life more pleasant, healthier and more sociable.

Under the government of former prime minister Stephen Harper, Canada was moving toward having letters delivered to centralized spots. That shift was halted by Justin Trudeau after the Liberals took power in 2015. A decade later, a Liberal Party now led by Mark Carney is pushing ahead with the idea.

© The Globe and Mail