You're describing the total cost and ignoring the larger amount of packages being delivered.
Cost per package drops.
At that point you have reached human peak efficiency and then the only thing you can do is build a self driving delivery van with an integrated crane/robot arm to operate the locker.
Self driving is hard. Building a robot arm that inserts packages sideways into a locker doesn't appear as difficult. The post office can dictate the package formats and add visual markers to make it easier for the robot to grab the right side.
Just put the mailbox so the postman reaches it from the driver seat window.
No SaaS, apps, drones or VC money needed.
The truth is that the wave of “imminent drone delivery” mania was always just marketing, and wasn’t going to make sense except in extremely limited scenarios.
- a second person (pay + benefits + training)
- drones
- helipad
- vehicle idle time for loading the drones
is more expensive than one just driving the boxes around.