CBP Suspends Rail Operations in Eagle Pass and El Paso, Texas

CBP is temporarily suspending operations at the international railway crossing bridges in Eagle Pass and El Paso, Texas, the agency said. The suspension, which CBP said is effective Dec. 18, is meant to help CBP redirect personnel to "assist the U.S. Border Patrol with taking migrants into custody," the agency said.

"Vehicular processing" remains suspended at Eagle Pass International Bridge 1, CBP said, and the Lukeville Port of Entry also remains closed, the agency said.

This closure is part of several "operational adjustments" made in the past several weeks to "maximize" CBP's ability to "respond, process, and enforce consequences" for migrants crossing the border. This shutdown was driven by a "recent resurgence of smuggling organizations moving migrants through Mexico via freight trains," the agency said. CBP said it will continue to adjust its plans to maximize their "enforcement efforts" against those trying to illegally enter the U.S.

CBP Laredo said the railroad bridge closure in Eagle Pass took effect on schedule at 8 a.m. on Dec. 18, according to an emailed update from the Laredo Licensed U.S. Customs Brokers Association. "The railroad crossings at the Port of Laredo and Brownsville remain open," and all "eight ports of entry within the Laredo Field Office are open and continue to process commercial shipments in the truck environment and now limited in the rail environment," the update said.

Texas Department of Public Safety "continues with its safety vehicle inspections on all tractor/trailers coming in" through the ports of Eagle Pass and Del Rio, CBP Laredo said. Those ports "will experience long commercial crossing times and are being impacted by the Texas DPS safety inspection truck exams."

The Border Trade Alliance demanded the Biden administration reopen the ports, saying closures are "never the answer." The closures "make a bad situation worse, inflicting even more economic harm on the U.S.-Mexico relationship and driving up costs," the BTA said. They are a result of Congress' and the administration's failure to "adopt a border security and immigration reform package that can balance our economic and physical security," it said.

Sen. Ted Cruz, R-Texas, also called on the Biden administration to keep the bridges open. "President Biden and Secretary Mayorkas's failed immigration policies must not stand in the way of commerce," Cruz said. "Time to prioritize American families and keep the bridges open!"

Texas DPS didn't respond to our request for comment.