Letter Carriers from across Minnesota were joined by local residents and elected officials at a rally Monday to save the Duluth mail-processing facility.

The U.S. Postal Service has already consolidated 141 mail-processing facilities nationwide and another 82, including the one in Duluth, are on the chopping block.

Letter Carriers said the result will be slower service.

As processing centers in Greater Minnesota cities like Duluth, Bemidji, St. Cloud and Mankato are closed, the mail has to be trucked to the Twin Cities for sorting and then trucked back, possibly doubling or tripling delivery times, they said.

The Minnesota unions of the National Association of Letter Carriers held their statewide convention in Duluth Monday and Tuesday. The rally was held as part of their convention.