Considering the cross-border issue
By Timothy Brady

With the upcoming visit of President Calderon of Mexico to Washington, I thought it wise to look at the Mexican view of the Cross-Border trucking issue. In this article I’m not going to take sides; I’m going to report the facts.

The different sides on the immigration issue are polarized. So it is not surprising that same division exists discussing the US allowing Mexican trucks to deliver freight to destinations within our borders and pick up loads from the US with destinations in Mexico.

Keep in mind, these are the same arrangements we have with Canadian truckers. As far as the issue of trucking job losses, it’s pretty equal on both sides of the border. The jobs which will be lost are the current cross-border jobs moving trailers from staging yards on either side of the border. There will be Mexicans losing the same jobs south of the border that Americans will be losing north of the border.

I went to the Mexican trucking association called “Canacar” to have Refugio Muñoz, the Director General of Canacar, answer questions concerning the Mexican trucking industry’s position on the cross-border trucking issue.

Here is that interview as translated from the audio provided to me from Canacar:

Who makes up CANACAR, truck drivers, fleets, or both?
CANACAR, the National Cargo Transportation Association which is the entity through which the government consults cargo companies who provide third party transportation services of goods both inside and outside the country. It is made of individuals and businesses. 

How many members does CANACAR have?
Right now we have about 4 thousand companies and 20 thousand individuals.

Regarding the pilot program, is there any fear associated with the fact that Mexican trucks will be entering the U.S. to transport goods?
We aren’t afraid at all, but for many years the Teamsters, a union organization, were afraid of the idea and used every method available to them to block our trucks and drivers from entering U.S. territory as was agreed in NAFTA. It is important to note that we are not in favor of a pilot program because what was agreed in the treaty was that all Mexican commercial transportation that complied with the conditions to enter the U.S. would be allowed to enter, just as U.S. commercial transportation meeting those conditions would be allowed to enter Mexico. There was never any mention of a pilot program, only of a pattern of gradual implementation: first, border states were going to be opened, then the entire country but, due to the pressure that the Teamsters put on the U.S. government, the border has practically remained closed. On the other hand, Mexican transport has no fear of going into the United States.

Are Mexican transportation companies worried about American transportation companies coming into Mexico?
We aren’t worried about American transportation companies coming into Mexico either. We know that was agreed in order to produce more fluid commerce between our two countries. In México, we have businesses that can compete with major American businesses, so we are not worried as long as the conditions are applied equally. The same conditions that are applied to American transportation companies should be applied to us, and those companies should also comply with the same conditions that Mexican companies comply with in Mexico.

Do Mexican transportation companies have the ability to transport goods in U.S. territory?
For a while, the uncertainty regarding the opening of the border has prevented Mexican businesses and investors from developing the necessary infrastructure to provide services in the U.S., but if the possibility of the border opening existed, then, undoubtedly, Mexican companies interested in operating in the U.S. would have to develop the necessary infrastructure to be successful.

Because of this idea the Americans have that Mexicans cannot enter the U.S. and transport goods, is it possible to use a strong argument to make them understand that Mexicans are capable of transporting goods on that side of the border?
Well, before the Free Trade Agreement, there were Mexican companies that entered the U.S. outside the commercial zone and never had any problems, so it’s difficult to understand why now, with a treaty in place, there are doubts about Mexican cargo companies operating in the United States. The most important thing to recognize is that both countries negotiated, agreed upon, and signed the treaty. If there had been doubts, they wouldn’t have signed it. The fact is that the treaty is signed, and there is non-compliance on the part of the United States, and Mexico should apply the sanctions that the treaty allows for in order to make the United States Government comply.

Do you think that Mexican transportation companies have been treated unjustly in the American press with regard to this matter?
Yes. The treatment we have received from the American press, as well as some congressmen and civil organizations in the U.S., reflects the high degree of discrimination that exists towards our country. However, I can say that our Mexican drivers are the most important element of our companies. They are highly competitive with American drivers, and we can almost assure you that if the border opens, the Americans would generate greater safety problems for us in our country than we do for them in theirs. This is largely true because of the different levels of infrastructure in the two countries, but even outside of that, our Mexican drivers operate with a high level of safety. With the more favorable conditions of infrastructure that exist in the U.S., and less favorable ones in Mexico, the Americans that come here would likely cause many more accidents in our country.

Returning to the issue of the pilot program, is the re-launching of the program good for the transportation sector in this country?
We are against the pilot program. We are in favor of opening the border, when and if it is done, under equal conditions for both countries. That means without discrimination against Mexicans in the U.S.. Mexican companies that enter the U.S. should have to comply with the same conditions that those from the U.S. must comply with to enter, and U.S. companies entering Mexico should comply with the same conditions Mexican companies comply with to come here. In any case, the pilot program would reflect a discriminatory scheme because it benefits a few to the detriment of many, and we are not in favor of it.

Finally, we’d like to invite you to make a statement to American radio and other media. 
The message I’d like to pass on is that the U.S. should depoliticize the transportation element of the Free Trade Agreement because the only thing that has resulted is uncertainty between businesses of both countries. We don’t know if the U.S. government will wake up in a good mood today and decide to open the border and then wake up tomorrow in a bad mood and decide to close it. So, unfortunately, this topic has been politicized in the U.S. and has been used as an election issue since 1995 when the border should have begun to open, and each election cycle is vulnerable to the pressures exhibited by the Teamsters. This causes the U.S. government to breach its treaty obligations with the government of Mexico. 

As we can see, the view from the south of the border is different from what we are seeing on this side of the border. The issue is a very hot potato for all parties concerned. I hope this article has provided you with some insight into a very important issue.

Here’s to good loads and good roads, everyone.
Timothy Brady © 2010
www.timothybrady.com
731-749-8567