Borderlands Mexico: Trucker protest raises stakes in Mexico-US B-1 visa dispute
This week in Borderlands Mexico: Trucker protest raises stakes in Mexico-US B-1 visa dispute; CBP announces extended-hours program at Laredo bridge; and Imperative Logistics expands El Paso footprint with RM Customhouse Brokers deal. The post Borderlands Mexico: Trucker protest raises stakes in Mexico-US B-1 visa dispute appeared first on FreightWaves.
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Borderlands Mexico is a weekly rundown of developments in the world of United States-Mexico cross-border trucking and trade.
This week in Borderlands Mexico: Trucker protest raises stakes in Mexico-US B-1 visa dispute; CBP announces extended-hours program for empty trailers at Laredo bridge; and Imperative Logistics expands El Paso footprint with RM Customhouse Brokers deal.
Trucker protest raises stakes in Mexico-US B-1 visa dispute Trucking industry leaders in Mexico are intensifying calls for U. S. officials to clarify how B-1 visa rules are being enforced against cross-border truck drivers, warning that continued uncertainty could disrupt freight flows between Mexico and the United States.
Officials with Mexico’s National Chamber of Freight Transportation (CANACAR) say Mexican drivers are losing their visas after encounters with U. S. officials involving alleged cabotage violations, but carriers lack clear information about how eligibility and violations are being determined at different border crossings. window. googletag = window.
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display('div-gpt-ad-1709668545404-0'); }); The dispute spilled into public view Thursday when truck drivers blocked commercial traffic at the Mexicali, Mexico-Calexico East (California) border crossing in protest of visa revocations.
CANACAR officials in neighboring Tijuana have urged drivers there not to stage similar blockades, warning that shutting down additional border crossings would increase the economic impact. Alfonso Millán Chávez, CANACAR delegate for Tijuana, Tecate and Playas de Rosarito, said the organization and other business groups are seeking meetings with U. S.
and Mexican officials to establish clearer protocols governing visa revocations tied to alleged cabotage, reported Uniradio Informa México. Millán said disagreements can arise over what constitutes a prohibited domestic movement in the U. S. , including how officials treat the movement of empty trailers.
“Sometimes we have had problems with the interpretation, for example with an empty trailer,” Millán said according to El Sol de Tijuana. “The empty trailer is there to be loaded with merchandise, and some officers interpret the empty trailer as merchandise.”
Cabotage generally refers to transportation between two points within the same country by a foreign carrier. Mexican truck drivers using B-1 visas are permitted to haul international freight into and out of the U. S. , but generally cannot perform point-to-point domestic U. S. freight movements. Millán said CANACAR wants U. S.
authorities to establish protocols for visa actions involving suspected cabotage and provide reliable statistics showing how many drivers have lost their visas. window. googletag = window. googletag || {cmd: []}; googletag. cmd. push(function() {var gptSlot = googletag.
defineSlot('/21776187881/fw-responsive-main_content-slot3', [[728, 90], [468, 60], [320, 50], [300, 100]], 'div-gpt-ad-1665767553440-0'). defineSizeMapping(gptSizeMaps. banner1). addService(googletag. pubads()); googletag. pubads(). enableSingleRequest(); googletag. pubads(). collapseEmptyDivs(); googletag. enableServices(); setInterval(function() {if (!
document. hidden) {googletag. pubads(). refresh([gptSlot]); } }, 30000); }); googletag. cmd. push(function() {googletag. display('div-gpt-ad-1665767553440-0'); }); CANACAR estimates more than 25,000 visas have been revoked from commercial drivers along Mexico’s northern border, including potentially 4,000 in the Tijuana area.
The figures are CANACAR estimates based on reports from its members and social media, however, rather than official U. S. government statistics. The organization has sought information from the U. S. Embassy in Mexico and U. S. State Department.
Related: Mexican truckers block California border crossing over B-1 visa crackdown Visa dispute reaches boiling point in Mexicali The pressure intensified Thursday when truckers protested at the Mexicali commercial port of entry over what drivers described as an increase in B-1 visa revocations.
Millán said CANACAR had anticipated growing frustration among drivers. “We understand the desperation of the drivers, and as a chamber and as an industry, I think we have been anticipating this over the last few months,” Millán said. “There hasn’t been a week when we haven’t raised the issue with various authorities in both Mexico and the United States.”
CANACAR is nevertheless urging drivers to pursue negotiations rather than expand the demonstrati
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