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Updated:
6/2/2008 1:30:00 PM
DOT Seeks Proposals to Fight Border Congestion
The Department of Transportation said Monday it is requesting proposals for innovative new approaches to reduce traffic tie-ups at some of the nation’s most congested border crossings.
“It’s time to put an end to the kind of delays that keep families and businesses at a standstill at our borders,” Transportation Secretary Mary Peters said in a statement.
Peters said DOT would select at least two projects each, along the Canadian and Mexican borders.
She said the effort was needed because over the past two decades, the value of freight shipments among the US, Canada and Mexico has risen by 170%, growing an average of 8% per year.
Peters cautioned, though, that this increasing demand was leading to longer delays at the crossings, as last year, U.S.-bound traffic from Canada experienced delays up to three hours at many crossings, costing businesses more than $14 billion annually.
On the Mexico side, San Diego County alone loses $271 million in annual revenue due to delays at the border, DOT said.
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