U.S. Says Truck Stowaways Not Much of a Problem

Immigrants attempting to illegally enter the United States in truck trailers are finding scant success, according to trucking and government officials.

In the wake of reports about stowaways on trucks to Britain, a check with U.S. authorities reveals that the techniques don’t work as well on this side of the Atlantic. The officials attribute this to greater vigilance by U.S. border agencies and others as well as better detection procedures.

While Britain is dealing with stowaways in trucks, in this country railroads frequently are the unwilling carriers of people who are sneaking in from Mexico, and intermodal seems to be one way to go.

A spokesman for the Union Pacific Railroad said immigrants sometimes peel open trailers and containers on rail cars.

“They liked them because the aluminum is easy to cut,” the spokesman said. “They can cut open the top, get in and then pull the aluminum back straight, so that a cursory examination would miss it.”

More sophisticated smugglers of human cargo use counterfeit or stolen seals to ensure that the containers or trailers are not opened for inspection, said the spokesman, who did not want to be identified. Similar methods are used by immigrants who cross the border by other means, then stow away to catch a ride out of the region.

“They would ride out, then when they felt the train slowing for the checkpoint, they would get out, run around the checkpoint and get back on the train as it moved on,” he said.

Some “border-crossers” and smugglers are savvy enough to realize that what works on intermodal trains might also work on trucks. Truck traffic from Mexico to the U.S. has grown by leaps and bounds since the advent of the North American Free Trade Agreement in 1994.

The rising number of truck crossings has meant more opportunities for smugglers and would-be immigrants.

The federal Immigration and Naturalization Service, which oversees the U.S. Border Patrol, says it has a handle on contraband traffic out of Mexico — at least the kind that tries to hitch a ride on commercial vehicles.

For the full story, see the March 15 print edition of Transport Topics. Subscribe today.