Lane expansion at Los Tomates

_{Cameron County Judge Eddie Treviño Jr. (left) and U.S. Sen. John Cornyn (R-Texas) perform the ribbon-cutting for the opening of four new lanes at the Veterans International Bridge at Los Tomates in Brownsville. Sofia Cantu/THE RIDER}

In 30 days, commuters traveling between Brownsville and Matamoros, Tamaulipas, Mexico, will be able to experience the new four lanes at the Veterans International Bridge at Los Tomates. 

 On Wednesday, the City of Brownsville and Cameron County hosted a ribbon-cutting ceremony at the Veterans International Bridge Primary Lane Expansion Project, where officials spoke about the upgrades.

The additional four lanes completed a gap that was included in the original General Services Administration master plan for the Border Station at a total project cost of $18 million. 

There are also eight new additional secondary inspection bay spaces and a new head house included in the expansion project. 

Los Tomates has facilitated the movement of passenger and commercial vehicles between Brownsville and Matamoros for over 20 years, according to the ceremony program.  

The project first broke ground in 2022, made possible by U.S. Sen. John Cornyn (R-Texas) legislation that authorized the Donation Acceptance Program. 

The DAP is a “partnership mechanism to collaboratively explore and implement tangible solutions to trade and travel facilitation and enforcement challenges,” according to the U.S. Customs and Border Protection website. 

During the opening ceremony, Cornyn said he is “happy to see this project come to fruition.”  

The senator said the project has been in the plans for “almost” eight years and in construction for the last two years and it is an “all hands on deck effort from the collaboration of public and private partnerships.” 

“As we all know, Mexico is our No. 1 trading partner,” he said. “This lane expansion will not only strengthen this important relationship but will lead to even greater economic prosperity for our two countries and our border communities.” 

During his speech, Cornyn said that for Fiscal Year 2023, CBP processed nearly 12 million passengers and nearly 5 million private vehicles at the International Bridges just in Cameron County. 

“By doubling the number of lanes, we will significantly reduce wait times, a goal we all share, improve air quality and boost the trade between our two countries,” he said. 

U.S. Rep. Vicente Gonzalez (D-Texas) said he was “proud” to vote in favor of the bipartisan infrastructure law that invested in the project. 

The law “invested $10.6 million in this project and will bring billions of future dollars to our region, which I’ll be proud to usher in on future projects just like this,” Gonzalez said. 

_{The four new lanes at the Veterans International Bridge at Los Tomates were built to reduce the traffic wait time that comes through the border between Brownsville and Matamoros, Tamaulipas, Mexico. Estefania Ramirez/THE RIDER}

He said the new lanes are a “huge improvement” for the borde’’s infrastructure and a “great example” of the collaboration between local, state and federal governments. 

Jared Bradley, deputy regional director of the General Services Administration, thanked the organizations that were involved in the project. 

Bradley said the GSA is the “landlord” of the government.

“Our mission is to deliver facilities to support the missions of other federal agencies and the American people,” he said. 

Bradley said the GSA is also working with CBP on over $2 billion in projects on the border by the bipartisan infrastructure law and the Inflation Reduction Act.

The project will be to “modernize ports of entry to meet modern infrastructure and security needs while using low embodied carbon construction materials and emerging and sustainable building technologies,” Bradley said. 

He said the GSA is “excited” to continue working with CBP and the community around them. 

Michael B. Reyes, acting director of the Brownsville Port of Entry, said that a “milestone” like this project reflects teamwork. 

“As we cut the ribbon, let us remember not only our mission, but also our continued commitment to the public to provide safe, efficient trade and travel between our two countries,” Reyes said. “Together, let us continue to chart forward, embracing the promise of tomorrow with unwavering commitment and boundless enthusiasm.” 

During the news conference, Cameron County Judge Eddie Treviño Jr. said the new four lanes are set to operate in the next 30 days.

Treviño said there will also be more CBP personnel to operate these lanes. 

“The Veterans International Bridge is the link to making our communities safer and our economy stronger,” Cornyn said.