'Customers are devastated': Outrage as An Post service ceases without notice at Offaly shop

Tom Doolan's Spar store in Blueball, just outside Tullamore, has been a cornerstone of the local community for the past 23 years, serving as both a landmark retail outlet and a trusted An Post agency.

Generations of local residents have relied on the store not only for their weekly shopping but also to collect social welfare payments and pensions, while using it as a vital social hub for meeting neighbours and discussing local matters.

However, the An Post service at the store ceased without prior notice on Monday, December 29, leaving many residents, particularly elderly and vulnerable people forced to travel into Tullamore to collect their payments. In some cases, individuals have been unable to access their money at all, causing significant distress and inconvenience.

The shop owner, Tom Doolan said that the machine has been giving them trouble for years but were never offered a replacement by the postal service. "The machines were outdated years ago. I looked for a new machine on several occasions but they told me they didn't have anything, we had a lot of trouble with it in the last 3-4 years but the last year has been really bad."

Speaking on the day the machine ceased on them just after Christmas. Tom commented: "We tried to get the machine to dial up to make payments but it wouldn't so we got out the engineer from An Post and eventually discovered that the changeover from copper to fibre cable was the problem, the machine was so old that it wouldn't work on fibre so we couldn't operate the post office." 

Tom was informed by An Post that the accounts would be moved to Tullamore and somebody would come to the shop to collect the machine and close any outstanding accounts. Speaking on the situation, Tom remarked: "It's terrible, we got no notice and we had customers in that morning looking for their payments, we were never told the machine was being changed over from copper to fibre. It's not good enough, people need to get their payments in the week between Christmas and New Years Day."

Tom says the situation has had a huge impact on the shop's faithful customer base who rely on the postal services in the store. He said: "our customers are devastated, most of them are elderly people, they would be able to park close to the door and come in and do their business, it gave them the bit of independence to collect their pension and buy the few items they wanted and talk to friends and for a lot of them, that was their outing for the week."

Local TD Tony McCormack has strongly criticised the situation, describing it as unacceptable, particularly at this time of year. "This is a terrible situation, and for it to happen without warning and at this time of year is hugely inconvenient for local people."

Deputy McCormack said. "The service that Tom has provided to the community for many years must continue. I have been in contact with An Post, who have confirmed that the issue arose due to the switchover from the old DSL system to the newer fibre network, which is incompatible with existing An Post equipment. While they have said the problem will be resolved in the New Year, this is not satisfactory and should never have happened in the first place. I will continue working on this until the service is fully restored."

Local Fianna Fáil Councillor Oliver Bryant also expressed serious concern and called for immediate action at ministerial level. "This service needs to be restored as soon as possible" Councillor Bryant said.

He continued: "Minister Darragh O’Brien must ensure that the people of the Blueball area have an An Post service they can rely on. The Post Office in Tullamore is already overflowing, with people queuing out the door. It is completely unreasonable to expect even more people to travel there due to the loss of a long-standing local service."

Local representatives are urging An Post and the Department of Communications to prioritise the restoration of the Blueball service and to ensure that communities are never again left without essential services due to technical changes implemented without adequate planning or communication.