If you live in the border region, you know that the traffic between Mexico and the United States is a considerable part of the everyday economy of El Paso. It’s why many people refer to the region as a Borderplex because it often encompasses the economy of Juarez and even Las Cruces.  People commute from Juarez to El Paso for school, work, shopping, entertainment, travel, and more. Six border crossings in the El Paso region allow cross-border movement of private vehicles, pedestrians, buses, commercial trucks, or rail cars. These include the Ysleta-Zaragoza Bridge, Bridge of the Americas, Good Neighbor Bridge, Paso del Norte Bridge, Union Pacific Rail Bridge, and BNSF’s rail bridge, which connects the railroad in the U.S to Ferromex Railroad.  

When goods are imported to the United States or exported, there is a system in place and vehicles must meet certain compliance regulations. Here at Border Trucking Compliance, we specialize in helping companies comply with the rules required for bringing or taking goods across the border. 

The Creation of the Department of Transportation 

For people that work in the industry: whether it be construction, compliance, or other contractors, the Department of Transportation (DOT) might just be a name they see around highway construction sites. The history of this government agency took place during a turbulent time in the country, where the expansion of infrastructure was a legislative priority.  

Before DOT, the Under Secretary of Commerce for Transportation administered the functions that most people now associate with DOT. The head of the Federal Aviation Agency pushed for the idea that transportation be elevated to a cabinet-level post and that an agency is created at the federal level. With one signature, President Lyndon Johnson created what was—at the time—the fourth-largest federal agency in 1966 and brought about 95,000 employees. It also consolidated the power of what was previously 31 smaller federal elements. 

Its first day of operation was April 1st, 1967. The purpose was, to some extent, to centralize some decisions of the national transportation system. It was meant to create, develop, and coordinate policies to provide an efficient and economical response to questions regarding the national transportation system. DOT’s mission statement states that it wants to “ensure our Nation has the safest, most efficient and modern transportation system in the world, which improves the quality of life for all American people and communities.” 

The agency sets all regulations and planning and supports the nation’s land, air, and sea-based travel systems. The department also has billions of dollars in federal grants each year that go to state and local authorities to improve transportation programs or infrastructure across the country. 

Doing Business With Our Southern Neighbor

El Paso is a major border region. A lot of traffic happens between the six international bridges that form part of the national border. Here are a few fun facts:

According to the U.S Bureau of Transportation in 2017,  the top 5 exports to Mexico were:

• Electrical machinery, equipment, and parts (9.2$billion)
• Computers related machinery ($5.8billion)
• Plastics and articles (2.4$billion)
• Measuring and testing instruments ($1.7billion)
• Vehicles other than railway ($1 billion)

The same year, imports into the United States included:

• Electrical machinery, equipment, and parts ($11.3 billion)
• Computers related machinery ($11billion)
• Vehicles other than Railway ($8billion)
• Measuring and testing instruments ($3.8billion)
• Furniture; lamps and prefab buildings ($2.1billion)

We have a lot of commerce back and forth with our Southern neighbors and a lot of it travels by trucking or by rail. In 2017, the total U.S Mexico trade was valued at $557 billion. Of that total amount, about $336 billion crossed the U.S Mexico border. The top commodity that crossed the El Paso border was electrical machinery, equipment, and parts. Crossings by trucking have increased by 40% since 1996. That is a steady increase, especially after NAFTA was signed. 

Things to Note Before Shipping Goods to Mexico

Since the institution of NAFTA, trade between our Southern and Northern neighbors has been a lot more straightforward and consistent. The USMCA continued some of these policies and the encouragement of cross-border trade.  More than $1.7 billion in goods cross the border from Mexico into the U.S.  More than 70% of that freight travels by truck. 

Find a company you trust to handle the paperwork. Crossing any border with goods usually requires a lot of documentation. Every business shipping from Mexico to the U.S., or vice-versa requires the assistance of some type of forwarding agency or compliance agency to help the process. 

About tracking your shipments. While technology and shipping companies have made great strides towards this effort, it’s not always easy to track your shipment the whole way. A lot of times, cross-border shipping requires multiple handovers between carriers. This makes constant tracking a little difficult.

When it comes to trucking compliance, get someone you trust. Don’t risk the hefty fines and hassle of neglecting the regulations. Call the Border Trucking Compliance today. 

As the coronavirus pandemic continues to rage across the United States and the world, the commercial trucking industry is feeling the impact. Since the very beginning of the pandemic, drivers and fleet owners have felt the weight of the coronavirus pandemic. Depending on your place in the industry, you may be dealing with wide-range of differing issues. 

In our inaugural blog, Border Trucking Compliance will analyze how the coronavirus pandemic has affected trucking and how it may affect it in the future!

The Coronavirus Pandemic 

If you have been living on a remote island for the past few months, COVID-19 is a deadly, infectious strain of coronavirus. It is believed to have originated in China, where it quickly spread across the globe. At the time of this publication, the United States has become the epicenter of the virus, which certainly does not bode well for the trucking industry. 

The coronavirus is a respiratory disease, which is especially deadly for individuals with certain pre-existing conditions. While older individuals are typically considered to be most at risk, individuals of every age demographic have succumbed to the virus itself or complications related to the virus.

Recently, some experts have even posited that the coronavirus may be airborne as well, further complicating the response on an individual and systemic level.  This heightened level of awareness for the coronavirus has been changing life for truckers across the country, in small and big ways. 

How Truck Drivers Are Being Affected 

Truck drivers are feeling the brunt of this in various different ways. The first, and perhaps less thought about effect, was the availability of rest stops for truckers. In the rush to close down public spaces, some rest stops also closed for fear of becoming hubs for coronavirus spread. Unfortunately, this had an adverse effect on truckers. The American Trucking Association (ATA) has worked to reopen all rest stops for truckers. 

Another seemingly minor but important aspect of the issue is dining and lodging areas for truckers. These areas, like rest stops, shut down as the coronavirus began to sweep across the nation. These lodging and dining locations are vital for truckers to get nutrition and rest. Yet again, the ATA has been hard at work trying to help truckers secure lodging and housing, as well as provide a list of open places. 

In terms of moving cargo, this is where the majority of the impact has been felt. Since money is flowing less and less among everyday Americans, some items have dropped dramatically in volume. Some truckers have seen a 30% to 60% drop in cargo volume, with some unable to find work at all. This only exacerbates the recent calls by truck drivers for better pay and protections. 

While it would be comforting to know that truckers would recover after the virus, it seems as though economic factors may have as much an impact on the industry. As of this publication, the disconnect between the stock market and the material conditions of Americans continues to grow. As the market rallies, millions continue to lose their jobs, leading some to believe that a market crash is inevitable. The stock market crashing once more would only exacerbate trucker issues. 

COVID-19 & Fleet Companies

For trucking companies and fleets, the problems are somewhat different. Fleet managers have been and will continue to make tough decisions as the coronavirus pandemic wages on. Companies have had to lay off drivers and reduce their workload to account for the decrease in economic activity. 

Fleet companies are also dealing with the medical ramifications of the virus, with truck drivers across the states falling ill to the virus. This has had the effect of putting a strain on the insurance industry as well as the medical industry. 

Many fleet companies were struggling to stay afloat prior to the coronavirus pandemic, and the fear is that many of these struggling companies may fail, leading to even more dangerous ripples throughout the industry and economy. 

What You Can Do

If you are a truck driver in the United States, there are a number of things you can do to protect yourself. 

First, you may want to stay up-to-date on CDC and WHO health recommendations. The recommendations from the CDC and WHO are crucial to giving day-to-day information related to the coronavirus. If you aren’t informed of the virus, then you may not take the proper precautions to stay healthy. 

For those who may own a trucking company, it may be prudent to try to take care of any debt that you may have accrued. You may need to also get rid of any unnecessary overhead that is possible, which may put you in an ideal financial position if the economy were to crash.