Ridge unhappy with U.S.-Mexico border delays

U.S. director of homeland security Tom Ridge said border checkpoint controls and inspection process between the United States and Mexico are still "not good enough," according a report in The Washington Post. Following a two day visit to Mexico, Ridge said he believes the enforcement and technology used at U.S.-Mexican border crossings is "really outdated" and leads to long traffic delays. An estimated

Sean Kilcarr

March 6, 2002

Following a two day visit to Mexico, Ridge said he believes the enforcement and technology used at U.S.-Mexican border crossings is "really outdated" and leads to long traffic delays. An estimated 300 million people annually cross the U.S.-Mexican border, and relying on manual inspections of passenger cars and commercial vehicles is "just not good enough anymore."

U.S. businesses contend that border-crossing delays have cost them hundreds of millions of dollars, adding that trucks that could once make four round trips a day over the U.SD. Mexican border before Sept. 11 now have time for just one trip. Ridge called such delays "unconscionable," the newspaper said.

About the Author

Sean Kilcarr

Editor in Chief

Sean Kilcarr is a former longtime FleetOwner senior editor who wrote for the publication from 2000 to 2018. He served as editor-in-chief from 2017 to 2018.