Imperial Valley News

San Ysidro, California - Customs and Border Protection will begin the upgrade of vehicle lanes at the San Ysidro port of entry next week, officials announced today. Construction begins on Monday, January 5, and entails installation of Radio Frequency Identification technology hardware in all 24 vehicle inspection lanes.

The improvements will help speed travel and further enhance border security. The RFID deployment is part of a national construction initiative at 39 major entry points along the U.S borders with Canada and Mexico over the coming months.

In order to install this RFID technology, CBP will close one to two vehicle lanes as they are being upgraded. The San Ysidro border station has 24 vehicle lanes, so during construction only 22 or 23 northbound lanes will be available for use.

Although this approach will minimize delays during this period of construction, those who regularly cross through the San Ysidro facility should plan accordingly and consider using the nearby Otay Mesa port of entry. The construction should be completed on January 30.

During this time, U.S. Customs and Border Protection is asking for travelers’ patience and understanding of the purpose of the improvements: increased border security and more efficient processing of legitimate cross-border travelers.

Use of RFID will eventually enable swifter processing at border crossings for travelers using new state-of-the-art travel documents. These documents include the passport card – a wallet-sized, cost-effective alternative to the traditional passport specifically designed for cross-border land and sea travel - and enhanced driver’s licenses being produced by several states.

The Department of State has produced more than 630,000 passport cards since it began production this summer. In addition, DOS is incorporating RFID technology into the next generation Border Crossing Cards. These new cards, which DOS has begun issuing, will further enhance and streamline border crossing for BCC-holders.

These documents are the result of a new requirement, the Western Hemisphere Travel Initiative, a Congressional mandate passed in 2004. The requirement went into effect for air travel in January 2007. Full implementation of WHTI for land and sea travel is expected to go into effect June 1, 2009.