News / 'Political' Texas truck inspections adding to cross-border pains

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Inspections of trucks by the Texas Department of Public Safety (DPS) continue to hamper cargo flows across the Mexico-US border and shippers are taking lengthy detours to get urgent shipments to their US destinations, and some are considering charters.

On the orders of the state governor, the DPS started inspecting trucks from Mexico on 20 September, at multiple border points, and on top of restrictions on truck and rail traffic, they have led to a sharp increase in wait times for trucks to enter the US from its southern neighbour.

A surge of would-be immigrants caused the US Customs & Border Protection agency (CBP) to reduce processing capacity at major entry points, notably Eagle Pass and Laredo, as it shifted agents from truck processing to assist with illegal immigrants.

In addition, rail traffic to the border slowed as Mexican rail company Ferromex suspended 60 routes to the area after accidents and fatalities involving migrants clinging to its trains.

By Sunday, waiting time for trucks to cross into the US had reached 24 hours, with more than 19,000, carrying about $1.9bn worth of cargo in a queue that stretched over 12 miles, Mexico’s National Chamber of Freight Transport reported.

Observers have called the DPS inspection “absurd”. According to state officials, they were implemented to disrupt drug smuggling by cartels, but critics say DPS inspectors cannot open trucks and can only check brakes, lights, windshield wipers and trucker documents. It has been widely decried as a political move by Texas governor Greg Abbott, who has made stopping the flow of migrants into the US a top priority.

Mexican president Lopez Obrador said Mr Abbott’s administration had a “very hostile attitude”, and accused the governor of complicating the migration issue with political manoeuvering. He added he would be sending a diplomatic note to Washington.

Some of the pressure has eased after the Bridge of the Americas, which connects Ciudad Juarez with El Paso, was reopened by the CBP and Ferromex resumed rail operations to the border area. But the DPS inspections continue to hamper flows into the US, aggravating the toll on transport operators.

Carlos Duron, president of cross-border airfreight trucking provider Mexpress, said one haulier had announced a special surcharge yesterday, claiming its drivers, who normally manage two or more border crossings in a day, could now manage only one.

Other shippers are swallowing the higher costs as their cargo takes detours to reach US destinations. Some urgent traffic headed to east US states has been routed via the border crossing near Nogales, Arizona, Mr Duron reported.

Quite a few truckers have tried to avoid the congestion in Texas by going to New Mexico and even Arizona – with mixed results. According to the Chihuahua Bridges Trust Fund, on one day 1,474 trucks crossed from Juarez to Santa Teresa in New Mexico, but another 1,127 were unable to cross that day, due to long wait times and limited inspection hours. This cost the carriers on average $65,000 a day, the fund noted.

Mexpress has also received enquiries about making trailers available for temporary cargo storage. The maquiladoras (low-cost factories in Mexico owned by foreign corporations) continue to operate, and their cargo is piling up, Mr Duron said.

According to some reports, a few of these factories that manufacture for export to the US have announced work stoppages and furloughs.

All this is happening as Mexico is seeing a large influx of investment with the nearshoring trend on the rise. Mr Abbot’s administration is not very popular with these arrivals, nor with producers on the Mexican side, their US clients or cross-border logistics operators.

The administration has not responded to criticism beyond saying it was working to disrupt drug smuggling.