EL PASO, Texas (Border Report) – Truck wait times dropped dramatically on Friday at a commercial port of entry in El Paso where Texas Department of Public Safety had been conducting extensive safety inspections since last Saturday.
It took truck drivers only a few minutes to get their loads across the Ysleta Port of Entry at 4 p.m. on Friday, compared to eight hours just the previous day. Wait times were still at more than four hours at Ysleta around 1 p.m., before traffic suddenly began flowing almost uninterrupted, according to the officials U.S. Customs and Border Protection website.
The Chihuahua Border Bridges Trust late Friday informed Juarez industry officials that DPS had halted its enhanced inspections operation. However, the Mexican officials did not know if the enhanced inspections would resume on Saturday or have been suspended until further notice.
Likewise, in El Paso, a federal official told Border Report that Texas DPS suspended operations at the Ysleta port on Friday afternoon. CBP referred all inquiries to DPS. Border Report reached out to the state agency but did not immediately receive a response.
This is at least the third time DPS conducts exhaustive safety inspections on trucks coming over from Mexico after they clear CBP. Previous inspections have coincided with migrant surges that exacerbated state officials’ frustration with the Biden administration over an immigration policy GOP lawmakers refer to as “open borders.”
Border industry officials said Mexican and U.S. businesses lost billions of dollars during the inspections last year and at least $130 million this time around. The costs include overtime for drivers, extra warehouse expenses and lost revenue from late or unfulfilled deliveries, among others.
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