The Road to Nogales

Sandra Aguilar, marketing manager at Ciruli Brothers, LLC says, “Prior to the port’s renovation, as many as 1,500 to 2,000 trucks crossed on a daily basis, yet it was designed to handle about 750. Now, the port has a daily capacity of about 4,000 trucks—once it becomes adequately staffed.”

“When the port had only four lanes, trucks used to have to wait six hours or more,” comments Allison Moore, director of legislative and regulatory affairs for the Fresh Produce Association of the Americas (FPAA). “Now that there are eight lanes, it’s more like 45 minutes—but we don’t allow ourselves to celebrate too much. For one, there needs to be improved technology and efficiency at the Querobabi, Mexico military checkpoint, about 200 kilometers south of the border on Highway 15 to expedite traffic and help maintain the cold chain.”

Second, according to Moore, “In the United States, there are thousands too few customs officers than are needed for seaports, airports, and other land border crossings. In Arizona, we’re slated to receive an additional 170 agents, but we really require 500 in the long range.” Filling this kind of quota is difficult, she explains, because “currently, it takes about 300 days to hire and train an officer. The goal is to get it down to 120 days.”

Help from Veterans?
Help, however, may be on the way. A recent bipartisan bill to enlist veterans to fill some of the customs agent void was passed by the House of Representatives and the Senate last October. Justin Dutram, deputy executive director of the Phoenix-based Arizona-Mexico Commission, a trade advocacy group, says the bill, called the “Border Jobs for Veterans Act,” was sponsored by Arizona Senators John McCain and Jeff Flake, as well as Ron Johnson of Wisconsin and Chuck Schumer of New York.

“It makes a lot of sense to hire members of the armed forces who are separating from active duty for U.S. Customs and Border Protection positions,” Dutram points out. “When you think about it, veterans are ideal candidates for these jobs—their backgrounds have been vetted, they’re often trained in policing and defense, and they’re already government employees.”

Traffic Flow & Possible Remedies
For the new port at Mariposa to function at its ultimate capacity, State Road 189 (also known as Highway 189 or Mariposa Road) which leads into the port has to be able to handle thousands of trucks each day. In peak season when trucks can number 4,000 per day, traffic can back up five miles east of Mariposa to the border.