Solar-powered postboxes are being rolled out across UK

Royal Mail is introducing 3,500 solar-powered postboxes across the UK, altering the iconic look of the red pillar boxes that have punctuated Britain’s streets for nearly two centuries.

In the new design, solar panels on the top of the postboxes power a digitally-activated drawer, allowing customers to deposit small parcels.

Items as large as a shoebox can be posted in the pillar boxes, in what Royal Mail says is the “biggest redesign in its 175-year history”.

The change comes as Royal Mail is struggling in the face of competition from other delivery companies.

The firm, bought by a Czech billionaire in December, has been fined millions after failing to meet letter delivery targets.

After a successful pilot that introduced the new boxes in Hertfordshire and Cambridgeshire, they will now be rolled out to other cities starting with Edinburgh, Nottingham, Sheffield and Manchester.

Two designs were trialled in the pilot, including one where the entire round lid of the postbox was black. Royal Mail said the firm decided internally that keeping the top red was more in keeping with the brand.

The new design that is being rolled out is topped with a grid of dark solar panels on a white rectangle, which will be oriented “due south for optimal sunlight”, the firm said.

It also features a barcode scanner, which opens a drop-down drawer that is big enough to accommodate parcels that do not fit in the traditional postbox slot.

Royal Mail said customers can use the service using the Royal Mail app, and can request proof of posting, and tracking of their parcel.

The company said it was “on a drive” to expand its parcel services and make them “as convenient as possible”.

The rise of online shopping means click-and-collect services have skyrocketed in popularity, with venues from local newsagents to petrol stations offering parcel send-and-deliver services. There has also been a proliferation of self-operated lockers in convenient locations.

“We are all sending and returning more parcels than ever before,” said Jack Clarkson, a managing director at Royal Mail. “This trend will only continue as online shopping shows no signs of slowing, particularly with the boom of second-hand marketplaces.”

The new postboxes are being rolled out over the next few months with Royal Mail hoping it will help shore up its share of the market.

“Our message is clear, if you have a Royal Mail label on your parcel, and it fits, put it in a postbox and we’ll do the rest,” Mr Clarkson said.

But it may not be enough to prevent rivals like Evri and Yodel, who often offer cheaper delivery, eating further into its business.

Online communication, combined with more competition in the delivery business, has already caused its first casualty among traditional postal services: Denmark recently ended its letter deliveries service, PostNord.

Royal Mail recently said it will start to deliver second-class letters on every other weekday and not on Saturdays to help cut costs.