The post office on Broad Street in Cumberland is on the list of those considered for consolidation or closure.

The Providence Journal / Glenn Osmundson

The Valley Falls post office branch in Cumberland is one of hundreds of stations and branches the U.S. Postal Service is considering for consolidation or closing, but a regional Postal Service spokeswoman said the process is just in the review stage. The office, part of the Pawtucket postal area, is at 197 Broad St.

“It’s a little too early to panic,” said Christine Dugas, Postal Service spokeswoman for Southeastern New England. “All it means is that it’s looking at that particular office to see if cost savings are available,” Dugas said. “We won’t know until the study is done.”

Dugas said the community “will be kept informed” and customers and municipal officials will be notified as the process moves along.

As its losses reached $7 billion, the Postal Service sent a list of nearly 700 potential candidates for review to the independent Postal Regulatory Commission. [The list is online at http://tinyurl.com/m5v32m]. No changes are expected before Sept. 30, the end of the fiscal year.

On a national level, it is considering cutting service to five days. In Providence, beginning on Aug. 16, the main post office on Corliss Street will close on Sunday. The automated lobby will remain open 24 hours a day.

Dugas said, “We’re looking at operations everywhere to see if there are opportunities to save money. The mail volume has dropped more than it ever has in the history of the Postal Service, and in fact in 2009, we are expecting the volume to be 20 billion pieces less than the year before.”

Dugas said some offices might be closed, while others might consolidate with other offices. “They could be consolidating processing equipment — so in some cases they might be moving offices, or adjusting the routes. We could streamline the workload, reduce any overtime. Not everything on this list is going to be closed. It’s very liquid, very fluid.”

Dugas said first-class mail has dropped as people increasingly use the Internet for e-mail, paying bills, buying postage or arranging package delivery. The economy is also to blame. “Some of the hardest-hit businesses — the banking and auto industries and the housing market — those are our largest mailers,” she said. “They send millions of pieces. That accounts for some of the loss, and naturally as some businesses go out of business entirely, they’re not sending any mail.”

But Dugas said the Postal Service plans to ensure that the mail goes through — whether by snowmobile and dogsled in Alaska, by mule to the bottom of the Grand Canyon or by ferry to Block Island and Martha’s Vineyard.

“We are pretty persistent and innovative and making sure people get their mail,” said Dugas. “We take that mission very, very seriously, but the only way to remain viable is to try and reduce costs and minimize the rate increases as much as possible.”

kziner@projo.com