Ciudad Juarez, Mexico
JUAREZ, Mexico -- Thanksgiving is fast approaching, and the holiday season is a usually a busy time along the Texas-Mexico border as people cross back-and-forth to visit relatives and shop.
This year, travelers may experience even more delays because of increased border security in Mexico.
Bumper-to-bumper cars wait to cross the frontier. It might look like traffic is backed up, but a short walk across the busiest bridge to El Paso bridge reveals a different picture.
The holdup is centered at a military checkpoint on the Mexican side.
A woman told News 8 the soldiers are checking for weapons. Increased security in some Mexican border towns struggling to cope with drug violence Is disturbing the normal flow of traffic into the United States.
"It's difficult now because of the military, but we're getting used to it," said Daniel Navarro, a student at the University of Texas at El Paso. "We have to cross every day."
Border crossers dealing with "doble revision" (double checkpoints) say the extra security is creating longer delays, but it's hard to say how much longer most people are waiting.
"With Mexican authorities doing inspections on their side, those are not accounted into our wait times," said Ruben Jauregui, a spokesman for the U.S. Customs and Border Protection service. "We only control what is on our side."
With the holiday season quickly approaching, retailers on the U.S. side are worried that any delays caused by the double checkpoints will only drive shoppers from Mexico away.
Cross-border commuters have no choice but to brave the lines, but during the holidays, shoppers may choose to avoid the hassle.
E-mail akocherga@belo-dc.com
