Arizona Daily Star

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First U.S. truck enters Mexico at Nogales

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One came in and one went out.

The cross-border trucking program, which went into effect last week, became reciprocal Friday when a truck belonging to an El Paso-based company crossed into Mexico through Nogales on its way to Ciudad Obregón, Sonora.

Stagecoach Cartage and Distribution became the first U.S. trucker to haul a shipment across the U.S.-Mexico border. The truck crossed at approximately 9 a.m. to deliver a load of plastic resin, according to the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration, or FMCSA.

"Today is historic. We're giving U.S. trucking companies the opportunity to compete in a new market that they have never before been allowed to penetrate," John H. Hill, FMCSA administrator, said in a news release. "These opportunities will help reduce costs for American consumers and businesses while increasing trade efficiency at the border and maintaining safety on America's highways."

The arrangement is a provision of the 1994 North American Free Trade Agreement and the subject of much debate over the past two weeks.

On the day the program was set to begin, members of the International Brotherhood of Teamsters protested in San Diego and Laredo, Texas. And on Tuesday, the U.S. Senate voted to ban Mexican trucks from U.S. roadways.

Until last week, Mexican trucks were restricted to driving within a commercial border zone that stretched about 20 miles inside the United States, except in Arizona, where it extended 75 miles.

So far, a single Mexican carrier, Transportes Olympic, based in Nuevo León, has crossed the border. A driver crossed in Laredo, Texas, last week and delivered a load of steel in North Carolina on Monday.

Melissa Mazzella DeLaney, a FMCSA spokeswoman, said more permits are expected to be issued in the next few days while a largerSenate transportation bill is debated.

President Bush has threatened to veto the ban.