Railroad companies and business groups are pressing the US government to reopen trade routes on the Texas-Mexico border, after authorities closed two crossings in response to a rise in migrant crossings in recent days.
US Border Patrol apprehended about 10,800 migrants at the southwest border on Monday, according to an internal agency report reviewed by Reuters. About 40% were families or unaccompanied children.
Several current and former US officials said the number of migrants encountered on Monday was near or at a single-day record high.
“The encounter levels we are currently seeing across the southwest border are presenting a serious challenge to the men and women of CBP,” acting US Customs and Border Protection (CBP) Commissioner Troy Miller said in a statement.
He added that the agency was using “all available resources” to ensure the safety of agents and migrants.
Business groups and railroad operators are urging authorities to reopen rail bridges in Eagle Pass and El Paso, which US border authorities closed on Dec.18 in order to “redirect personnel” to process migrants crossing the border.
“Shutting down rail traffic through Eagle Pass and El Paso will inflict significant economic harm,” Neil Bradley, chief policy officer of the US Chamber of Commerce, said in a statement to Reuters, while saying, “Halting the legal movement of commerce will do nothing to secure the border.” In October, total rail freight between the El Paso and Eagle Pass ports topped $3bn in both directions, according to the US Department of Transportation. That accounted for some 4% of total trade across the US-Mexico border that month.
Total rail freight between the US and Mexico, in both directions, in October accounted for $8.4bn, according to the US Department of Transportation. That compared with $51.2bn carried by trucks.
“The urgency of reopening these crossings and restoring rail service between the two nations cannot be overstated,” the president and CEO of the Association of American Railroads, Ian Jefferies, said in a statement on the trade group’s website.
“Every day the border remains closed unleashes a cascade of delay across operations on both sides of the border, impacting customers and ultimately consumers,” Jefferies said.
The increase in migrant crossings comes as Democratic President Joe Biden, who is running for re-election in 2024, has sought to strike a deal with Republican lawmakers that would pair increased US border security with military aid for Ukraine and Israel.
But a bipartisan group of senators negotiating a compromise have so far failed to reach a deal as a Christmas break approaches.
The Texas cities of Eagle Pass and El Paso have received thousands of newcomers in recent days, as migrants — including many families with young children — make their way to the border by bus, atop cargo trains, on foot and even by bicycle.
In Eagle Pass, hundreds of migrants waited outdoors near the river, some wrapped in blankets, to be processed by US border officials on Tuesday.
Union Pacific and Berkshire Hathaway’s BNSF Railway, two of the nation’s largest freight railroad companies, warned of supply chain disruptions ahead of the Christmas holiday due to the railway bridge closures.