City of Laredo officials address World Trade Traffic issues and outages with possible solutions in press conference

LAREDO, Tex. (KGNS) – Mexican customs system failures causing heavy traffic delays in north Laredo are turning into a weekly occurrence.

On Tuesday, City of Laredo leaders got together to address what is happening and provided possible solutions when a shutdown happens.

Many solutions are being put out on the table to help alleviate the traffic by the World Trade Bridge that stretches onto Loop 20.

Some of the proposals include modernizing the systems in Mexico, moving tractor-trailer traffic to truck stops and parking lots, and Laredo police helping with congestion at intersections.

One of the main concerns voiced has been the traffic at the intersections.

Laredo Police have suggested putting up signage on I-35 and Loop 20 letting people know about shutdowns so drivers are able to take precautions in those areas.

Police Chief Miguel Rodriguez Jr. says, “We are no longer going to permit this commercial traffic to continue backing up all the way to University Drive or even to Shiloh. The traffic is going to get stopped right at the entrance of the overpass at International and Loop 20.”

Vanessa Perez, council member for District 7, says this traffic isn’t only a Mines Road problem anymore. She says, “The problem is starting to become more prevalent now because the system keeps dropping for longer periods of time. Before, the system would drop for an hour, 30 minutes, 2 hours. We can handle that volume. Once it starts going over 5,6 hours and [even] overnight, I mean we can’t handle [all] those 18-wheeler traffic in our city at one moment.”

Arturo Dominguez, a customs broker and part of the Laredo Port of Entry Advisory Committee, says at least 8,000 trucks cross into Mexico through Laredo’s ports of entry through the World Trade Bridge daily.

City officials say that with Laredo becoming the number one port of entry, the title comes with a lot of responsibility to make sure trade is running smoothly and not affecting the consumer.

However, long lines have been a common sight for those traveling toward the World Trade Bridge and Laredo officials have reported it’s all due to the Mexican customs system shutting down.

“It affects their pocket eventually because they are doing fewer crossings so it affects the income they are taking home,” Dominguez says.

Over the weekend, City of Laredo Mayor Dr. Victor Treviño had a meeting with a delegation of Mexican officials from the governor’s office of Tamaulipas and several representatives from Mexican federal agencies.

One of the representatives will report directly to Mexican President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador about their visit and the details of their discussions.

Dr. Treviño says there will be a follow-up meeting in the next two weeks.

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