why do we need to use city and state in our addresses if ZIP codes are already linked to the city and state?
In: 100
Aside from that – I like the idea of a really, really simple postal address. Here in the UK, a postcode is very specific. Imagine just having to write: Mr Smith, 11a, TL15 3PH.
You don’t. In The Netherlands, if you post a letter with ZIP (4 digits + 2 letters) + housenumber, it gets delivered.
Everything else is backup.
It gets better: if you go to a postal office and tell them the zip+housenumber, they print an unreadible code and put that on your parcel/letter. No-one except the deliveryguy will know where the package is going.
True story. In 1980 someone from America addressed a letter “Terry Fox, Canada” and it was successfully delivered.
[Terry Fox, Canada](https://news.google.com/newspapers?nid=1338&dat=19801226&id=zwZMAAAAIBAJ&pg=6280,3430076)
In Ireland the zip codes are per household so technically you don’t even need to have anything else on the address. But the rest is there for a backup if it’s damaged or illegible
I actuality recently read (part of) a book by John Grisham called “The Summons” where the main character’s father never writes city/state — only zip code.I never felt right about it until then, but yeah, entirely possible, but risky.
because even the postpeople usually don’t memorize all the zip codes and at the last mile, it’s really helpful.
also because people do typos, it’s a redundancy to make stuff easier
Redundancy. If someone has terrible handwriting, a postal worker might not be able to tell the difference between a letter meant to go to, for example, Duxbury vs Roxbury. But since Duxbury is 02332, and Roxbury is 02119, it clears up any ambiguity.
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