SAN FRANCISCO SEGWAY TEST. The latest USPS test of the Segway Human Transporter (HT) began yesterday in San Francisco on five residential letter carrier routes, each with approximately 400 delivery addresses. San Francisco Postmaster Rosemarie Fernandez says her office looks forward to "giving the Segway HT a thorough evaluation."

  SNEAK PEEK: CARY GRANT. The Cary Grant commemorative postage stamp was unveiled to the public last night on television's Access Hollywood. The new 37-cent stamp in the popular "Legends of Hollywood" series will be issued later this year in Los Angeles, CA. The exact date for the issuance is still pending, but will likely be in September or October.

  LIFE ON LE TOUR. The journey is well underway for the USPS Pro Cycling Team and Lance Armstrong as they strive to win a fourth consecutive Tour de France. With the ninth stage of the grueling month-long race complete, Lance Armstrong has moved up solidly into second place, only 26 seconds off the leader. Mountain stages - at which Armstrong traditionally excels - begin later this week. You can read accounts of the team's triumphs and struggles at http://www.uspsprocycling.com/. Features include a daily Tour de France diary, a behind-the-scenes notebook, interviews with team members and photos by renowned photographer Graham Watson. Today's issue of USA Today features an exclusive interview with Lance Armstrong.

  STAMPS AND POP ART. The next U.S. commemorative stamp will honor pop art icon Andy Warhol. The nation's stamps offer "a diverse sampling of history, art and entertainment," according to USPS Board of Governors Vice Chairman David Fineman, who will dedicate the stamp Aug. 9 in Pittsburgh. "This exciting new Andy Warhol stamp evokes the free and creative spirit in this country," he says. "We're sure it will be very popular with our customers and stamp collectors."

The Postal Service will print 61 million of the new 37-cent commemoratives, ensuring Warhol far more than the fleeting "15 minutes of fame" he suggested the modern media would afford everyone in the future. Warhol's career included ventures in advertising, design, photography, illustration, film, television, writing and publishing. He was a leading figure in the pop art movement. The stamp features a self-portrait of the artist from 1964.

  NEW SERVICE RECORD. The Postal Store at usps.com recorded its busiest day ever Monday, July 1 - the first business day after the June 30 rate change. Over 106,000 people placed 7,308 orders for stamps and other philatelic products, and there were another 1,500 orders for shipping supplies. The previous high was Jan. 8, 2001, when 84,000 visitors made 6,473 purchases.

Traffic was expected to be heavy, and USPS added more hardware to significantly increase the store's ability to process more orders. Since its inception in November 2000, The Postal Store has had 7.7 million visitors, taking more than one million orders during the site's 20-month existence. The site has 650,000 registered customers.