Expanding Quick Cargo Passage Across the Southern Border

Though several points were covered by Homeland Security’s (www.dhs.gov) Ridge and Mexico’s Secretary of the Interior, Santiago Creel, two have special meaning for the flow of cargo between the two countries.

The two agreed to sign the 2004 U.S. – Mexico Action Plan for Cooperation and Border Safety. This is a key document in committing both countries to permit the free flow of goods – estimated at $630 million each day – while maintaining the integrity of the border. The other point was a promise to expand the Free and Secure Trade (FAST) lanes program to five additional land ports of entry at the border. Presently one FAST lane is open at the El Paso – Juarez border point.