2 Postal Addressing Standards

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24 Rural Route Addresses

241 Format

Print rural route addresses on mailpieces as: RR N BOX NN. Do not use the words RURAL, NUMBER, NO., or the pound sign (#).

Rural route address formatting

242 Leading Zero

A leading zero before the rural route number is not necessary.

Acceptable and preferred usage of leading zeros in rural route numbers

243 Hyphens

Print hyphens as part of the box number only when they are part of the address in the ZIP+4 file.

Use of hyphens in rural route box numbers

244 Designations RFD and RD

Change the designations RFD and RD (as a meaning for rural or rural free delivery) to RR.

Incorrect and correct designations for RFD and RD addresses

There should be no additional designations, such as town or street names, on the Delivery Address Line of rural route addresses. Because street names used together with route and box numbers can create potential matching difficulty, mailers are encouraged to use only one style of addressing. If secondary name information is used, however, place it above the Delivery Address Line.

Incorrect and correct usage of additional designations for rural routes

246 ZIP+4

When applying a ZIP+4 Code to a rural address, an exact match is preferred. If a box number is included in the address, the mailpiece must bear the appropriate ZIP+4 Code representing the range for that box number. When box number information is not available, the Rural Route base record must be used.