Line of Travel (LOT) is a feature that assigns a code to your address records, allowing you to qualify your Standard letters and flats for USPS Enhanced Carrier Route rates. LOT is also referred to as eLOT or Enhanced Line Of Travel. If you use Line of Travel, your mailing is eligible for the USPS non-automation Basic Rate. To qualify for this rate, your mail must be in LOT sequence. Assigning a LOT Code to your mailings saves you mailing time and money.
The Line of Travel code indicates the order in which delivery will be made within a given ZIP + 4 carrier route and whether delivery will be made in ascending or descending sequence. Line of Travel appends a four digit number and a sequence code to all name and address records with a ZIP + 4 Code. This LOT code is then used for sortation purposes to simulate walk sequence mailing within the number range associated with the ZIP + 4 Code. After the ZIP + 4 file is LOT-coded, the file is then sorted sequentially by 5-byte ZIP Code, 4-byte carrier route, 4-byte LOT number, and a 2- or 1-character sequence code.
The LOT-coded record includes:
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ZIP + 4 Code
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Delivery Point Code (DPC)
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Carrier Route
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Line of Travel number
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Ascending/descending sequence code
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Optional sequence codes used for sortation provided by the Line of Travel software