TransportationMexican trucks cited for 1 million violations since 2007

Published 24 August 2011

Trucks transport roughly $275 billion worth of goods — or 70 percent of the total — that pass between the United States and Mexico annually; the trucks from Mexico, however, often fail to meet U.S. safety standards

Mexican trucks northbound // Source: updatednews.ca

Trucks transport roughly $275 billion worth of goods — or 70 percent of the total — that pass between the United States and Mexico annually.

The trucks from Mexico, however, often fail to meet U.S. safety standards. Inspectors from the Texas Department of Public Safety have found a million violations in trucks coming from Mexico into El Paso, Texas between 2007 and 2011, the El Paso Times reports. The timing of the report is not insiginificant, because it comes just weeks before Mexican trucks will be allowed to begin shipping long-haul freight into U.S. territory.

The statistics, obtained by Fox News Latino, show that between the fiscal years of 2007 and the first six months of 2011, Texas completed 1.2 million inspections at the El Paso state facilities by the Bridge of Americas and the Zaragoza International Bridge. Inspections led to 1,004,213 violations including brake problems, defective lights, and flat tires.

The El Paso Times notes that the violations found by U.S. officials, many of them repeat offenses, caused 31,519 trucks and 625 drivers to be placed out of service during this time period.