U.S. Working on Border Plan, Despite Swine Flu Concerns

(Sean McNally — Transport Topics)

The Obama administration is continuing to work on a plan to restart cross-border trucking between the United States and Mexico, even as the two countries battle the spread of “swine flu.”

Some U.S. trucking operations doing significant business in Mexico said last week that their businesses had not yet been affected by the influenza outbreak, and that Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood said the administration was dealing separately with the flu and the cross-border trucking issue.

“At this point, there is no relationship, there’s no connection,” Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood told reporters April 29. “The truck program is different than the swine flu problem.”

Since Mexico announced nearly $2.4 billion in tariffs on U.S. products after the U.S. shut down deliveries by Mexican trucks, the administration has been working to resolve the trade dispute by putting together a revamped cross-border trucking program. Read more here.