Closure of Zaragoza International Bridge Forces Empty Trucks to Take Longer Routes and Absorb Higher Costs
The closure ordered by the National Customs Agency of Mexico (ANAM) of the passage of empty trucks through the Ignacio Zaragoza International Bridge will force transporters to travel an additional 77 kilometers, lose up to an hour and a half per unit, and absorb additional costs of between 80 and 100 dollars.
The suspension began on September 9 and will remain in effect until further notice. The Matamoros Customs Administration attributed the decision to instructions from central offices, but did not provide the reasons or establish a date for resuming service, reported Fernando Ortíz, a transportation businessman in the Tampico metropolitan area.
Transporters, customs and freight brokers, as well as logistics operators, demanded the immediate reopening of the crossing and warned that the measure has already begun to affect the timing of commercial exchanges between Mexico and the United States.
They also called on Ninfa Cantú Deándar, head of the Economy Secretariat of the Government of Tamaulipas, to join the demand. “If she cannot, then she should resign. We are on our own, and she neither manages, explains, nor responds as the first authority responsible for the matter,” complained Armando Bonilla, a businessman from Nuevo Laredo.
Detour Raises Operating Costs
The Zaragoza crossing connects Matamoros with Brownsville, Texas, and is used for the return of vehicles that enter Mexico without cargo and later pick up export merchandise.
With the Import Empty Vehicle modules closed, trucks must detour to the Los Indios International Bridge, west of Brownsville, before returning to Matamoros.
The additional journey increases diesel consumption and operating hours. The sector estimates an additional cost of between 80 and 100 dollars per unit.
“Keep in mind, that expense does not stay within transportation. It becomes part of the logistics chain and may ultimately be passed on to the cost of goods,” said Fernando Ortíz.
The impact is occurring on one of the main land routes for bilateral trade. According to figures from the Secretariat of Infrastructure, Communications and Transportation (SICT), trucking accounts for 73.6 percent of foreign trade between Mexico and the United States.
Canacar Calls for Government Intervention
For its part, the National Chamber of Freight Transportation (Canacar) reported that it submitted a document to ANAM Matamoros to formally document the impacts. The Chamber’s national representation did the same before the agency’s central offices.
The sector called for the intervention of the Secretariat of Finance and ANAM to restore the passage of empty vehicles through Zaragoza and prevent what it described as unnecessary detours.
So far, the customs authority has maintained the closure without explaining why it ordered it or when it intends to lift it.
Source: jornada
