Hundreds of additional post boxes for Northern Ireland

Royal mail is to install 280 additional post boxes in Northern Ireland. 

They'll be mainly in rural areas, housing developments and places with a high footfall. 

The exact locations will be announced in Spring 2017. 

England will also get 280 new installations, Scotland will receive 150, and Wales just 47. 

The announcement means 98 per cent of all households across the country should be within half a mile of a postbox.

Because of declining letter volumes, it's hoped the new installations will boost the number of items being posted in postboxes.

Paul Sweeney, Royal Mail General Manager for Northern Ireland, said: “Access to postboxes is very important to our customers in Northern Ireland.

"This programme underlines our commitment to them and the Universal Service.

"The new boxes will benefit rural areas, which have not previously been served postboxes.

"We are also installing boxes in urban areas in response to changes in population and in new housing developments throughout the UK.”