Laredo officials vow to better tame truck backlog on border roadways

McALLEN, Texas ( Border Report ) — The city of Laredo promises to do more to stop truck backups on area roads when Mexico closes the World Trade Bridge.

During a news conference on Tuesday, Mayor Victor Trevino and Laredo Police Chief Miguel Rodriguez pledged to do more to help, the Laredo Morning Times reports.

There have been several reported backups and hours-long waits when Mexican customs officials closed the World Trade Bridge due to software problems.

Although U.S. equipment has not faltered, the delays and closures have caused massive backups in roads leading near and to the World Trade Bridge, which is the No. 1 inland port for commercial vehicles in the United States.

Rodriguez has pledged to dispatch officers to prevent traffic backups “to keep those access roads open,” the newspaper reports.

Over 227,000 commercial vehicles crossed the World Trade Bridge in March, according to the city .

Laredo City Councilmember Vanessa Perez reportedly expressed frustration with the situation, saying: “We can handle an hour or two of the system going down, but once the system goes down for three, four or five hours overnight, that’s where it becomes an issue because we don’t have the space. … We can’t handle all these trucks.”

Sandra Sanchez can be reached at SSanchez@BorderReport.com.

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