City renews partnership with CBP to increase staffing, reduce bridge wait times
The City of El Paso has renewed its partnership with U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP), providing more than $400,000 towards the reimbursement of additional customs staffing.
The goal is to reduce the time it takes to cross into the United States at city-managed ports of entry. The Bridge of Americas is currently ineligible to receive this funding because it is owned and operated by the federal government.
The program, launched in 2014, has allowed the City to pay for additional CBP service through collecting revenue from tolls, and has since reimbursed CBP nearly $3.1 million for more than 29,000 service hours.
City officials said the program has proved effective. Last year alone, it helped process some 750,000 cargo trucks and 12.2 million vehicles, reducing wait times by 15 percent and 14 percent, respectively.
El Paso’s international bridges are vital to the residents of both El Paso and Juarez, as many cross on a daily basis to shop for groceries, visit family members, or spend time in the neighboring city. The City hopes the program will help boost the local economy.
“The P3 program clearly reduces border crossing wait times and is vital to the continued economic integration of our region,” Matthew McElroy said. “By paying for additional CBP staffing to keep all lanes open during peak hours, we help bolster international trade and commerce, which creates thousands of jobs in El Paso and throughout the rest of Texas and the United States.”
McElroy is the director of the City’s International Bridges Department.
In December of 2013, the City first approved the Section 560 Annex agreement with CBP, allowing the City to pay CBP to staff all lanes during peak hours. The program commenced in 2014, and City Council agreed to extend the agreement for another year in 2015.
