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Royal Mail has pledged to nearly double the number of parcel pick-up and drop-off points to 45,000 locations nationwide by the end of the decade as it looks to meet growing demand from online shoppers and marketplace sellers.

The group is ramping up the roll-out of parcel lockers as part of aims to rapidly increase out-of-home parcel points within five years, up from 24,000 currently.

Under the plans, it wants every customer living in an urban area to be no more than five minutes’ walk away from a locker, shop or parcel postbox.

Those in suburban and rural areas will be within a five and 15-minute drive away respectively.

The group said it expects around a third of parcels in the UK to be delivered to out-of-home parcel points within five years, up from about 15% currently.

Locker usage is also increasing, with 40% of UK adults having used one in the past year, according to the firm.

Alistair Cochrane, interim chief executive at Royal Mail, said: “Royal Mail is committed to being the UK’s most convenient delivery company.

“This ambitious new target strengthens our leading position, with the largest parcel point network in Britain, giving customers even more convenience and choice.

“For many, nothing beats the ease of home delivery or collection but we’re seeing a clear shift towards more people choosing lockers and shops.”

The parcel points come in addition to Royal Mail’s 115,000 postboxes, which can be used for parcels small enough to fit through a letterbox.

Royal Mail is also rolling out 3,500 solar-powered “postboxes of the future” across the UK, featuring a digitally activated drop-down drawer so customers can send parcels as large as a shoebox.

The new design – the biggest change to the postbox in its 175-year history – was trialled in Hertfordshire and Cambridgeshire earlier this year and is being expanded across the UK.

The firm is also growing its recently launched Royal Mail Shop brand, with aims for nearly 8,000 convenience stores to feature the brand and offer parcel postage and stamps over the counter.

Royal Mail’s owner International Distribution Services (IDS) was taken over in June by Czech billionaire Daniel Kretinsky’s EP Group in a £3.6 billion deal.