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| Planning | FHWA > HEP > Planning > Border
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JWC U.S./Mexico Border Transportation Planning |  |
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CURRENT BORDER ACTIVITIESUS Department of Transportation Unveils New Program to Fight Border Congestion The U.S. Department of Transportation seeks innovative ways to fight congestion at some of the nation's busiest border crossings. Surface Trade with Canada and Mexico Rose 1.5 Percent from March 2007 Trade using surface transportation between the United States and its North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) partners, Canada and Mexico, was 1.5 percent higher in March 2008 than in March 2007, reaching $70.8 billion, the Bureau of Transportation Statistics (BTS), a part of the U.S. Department of Transportation’s Research and Innovative Technology Administration (RITA), reported today (May 29, 2008). FAST On October 27, 2003, an initial FAST (Free and Secure Trade) lane was opened in El Paso/Juarez. Plans are underway to expand FAST lanes in 2004 to six additional border crossing points (Otay Mesa, CA, Calexico, CA, Nogales, AZ, Laredo, TX, Pharr, TX, and Brownsville, TX) that account for 91 percent of the trade crossing the US-Mexico border. Also, southbound lanes will be made available at these same locations. A major effort has been implemented to jointly review air passengers arriving on our shared continent. The Advanced Passenger Information System (APIS) permits the screening of arriving passengers with a view to identifying high-risk individuals. There are other important cooperative efforts in the goods area, such as the exchange and management of information, securing in-transit shipments, and major efforts to share, research and effectively implement the latest in technological advances in support of secure and efficient processing. From a US Department of State website, U.S.- Mexico Binational Commission Working Group on Homeland Security and Border Cooperation. U.S.-Mexico Binational Bridges and Border Crossings Group The U.S.-Mexico Binational Bridges & Border Crossing Group (BBBXG) discusses planned or ongoing border crossing projects along the 1,952 mile U.S.-Mexico border. This group is co-chaired by the Department of State and the Mexican Secretariat of Foreign Relations (SRE), and attended by federal agencies with an interest in border crossings (Customs and Border Protection (CBP), Department of Homeland Security (DHS), General Services Administration (GSA), U.S. Coast Guard. Animal Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS), Food and Drug Administration (FDA), FHWA, FRA, International Boundary and Water Commission (IBWC), the respective departments of transportation and border authorities of the Border States and their corresponding agencies in Mexico). The State Department is the U.S. co-chair because it is the federal agency responsible for the Presidential permitting process of border crossings, which is essentially U.S. federal permission to build or modify an international border crossing. The BBBXG holds at least annual meetings at locations along the border, rotating between the states and countries. BBBXG meetings generally consist of three separate sections: Separate U.S. and Mexican delegation meetings where general issues are discussed and respective positions formulated; a public session where bridge and land border crossing sponsors or promoters make presentations on their projects to the entire group; and a government-only technical session, where the binational group discusses the status of ongoing border crossing projects and related issues. If time permits, the BBBXG may also have a "border walk" or visit to a local planned or existing international port of entry. The State Department has announced that it would prefer only one border-wide BBBXG meeting per year, while hosting two or more regional BBBXG meetings annually. More information on Presidential Permits for Border Crossings. US VISIT The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) has been directed to implement the U.S. Visitor Immigrant Status Indicator Technology (US VISIT) program at all land ports of entry by December 31, 2005. The US VISIT program will track all entries and exits to and from the United States. According to DHS, the program will collect, maintain, and share information, including biometric identifiers, through a dynamic system, on foreign nationals to determine whether the individual should be prohibited from entering the U.S.; can receive, extend, change, or adjust immigration status; has overstayed or otherwise violated the terms of their admission; should be apprehended or detained for law enforcement action; or needs special protection/attention. Goals of the program are to:
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