CTA Cites Border Concerns
The Canadian Trucking Alliance said it sees some positives in the U.S. cross-border passport rules, but still has concerns about the implications for cross-border truck traffic between the United States and Canada.
“CTA has advocated FAST [the Free and Secure Trade initiative] as an alternative for commercial drivers, and it now appears certain that this will become a reality,” said CTA Chief Executive Officer David Bradley.
A Senate Committee last week approved an amendment to halt the launch of a plan for a new border-crossing card for at least 17 months, in order to give the Departments of State and Homeland Security more time to fix its problems.
“It appears DHS and [State] have recognized that with passport offices overloaded, and a little over six months until the original land border implementation date, they could not possibly go ahead on Jan. 1, as planned,” he said in a statement.
The United States may also allow use of security-enhanced drivers license, Bradley said, “which would be an attractive alternative not only for the trucking industry, but also passenger car drivers. We have long been concerned over the possibility of border disruptions if there are passenger vehicle bottlenecks as a result of [security] requirements.”
