Canada, US Launch Truck Pre-Inspection Program at Peace Bridge
Canada and the United States have launched the second phase of a pilot program designed to speed freight flow at the border by having U.S.-bound trucks inspected on Canadian soil.
The Feb. 24 launch was at the Peace Bridge between Buffalo, N.Y., and Fort Erie, Ontario, where truck inspectors from U.S. Customs Border Protection began clearing trucks for the crossing.
New lanes and facilities were constructed on the Canadian side of the bridge so that the U.S.-bound trucks can be inspected before driving onto the span, which is narrow and plagued by congestion.
“The trucking industry has a keen interest in facilitating the shipment of goods across the Canada-U.S. border while maintaining security,” Canadian Trucking Alliance President David Bradley said in a statement after the opening ceremony.
The first phase of the program lasted five months last year at the border crossing in Blaine, Wash., under which U.S.-bound trucks were inspected on the north side of the border in Surrey, British Columbia. The Peace Bridge program is planned to last at least six months.
According to bridge officials, about 1.3 million truck trips a year are made across the bridge.
