Juan Carlos Villa Texas Transportation Institute

1. Transportation Border Working Group Data WorkshopIdentification of New Technologies for Data Collection TechnologiesRFID Juan Carlos Villa Texas Transportation Institute

2. Agenda • Border Crossing Time • Technology Assessment • The Northbound Border Crossing Process at the U.S./ Mexico Border • Implementation • Border Crossing “Delay” • Next Steps

3. Why Measure Border Crossing Time • FHWA is undertaking a Freight Performance Measurement (FPM) initiative aimed at measuring travel times in freight significant corridors and border wait times at major U.S. land border crossings • Delay time for commercial motor vehicles entering and leaving the U.S. at ports-of-entry is a key indicator of transportation and international supply-chain performance • Information collected should be consistent across all border crossings

4. Why Measure Border Crossing Time (cont.) • Identify appropriate ITS or other commercial technologies that enable border travel and crossing times to be more easily and precisely measured for commercial Northbound traffic • Specific areas of interest: • To implement a sustainable system that can measure border delay and crossing times for freight traffic • Proposed system should be transferable to other Land Port of Entries along US / Mexico Border • Analysis should explore technologies that would support the measurement of crossing times for passenger vehicles as well

5. Technology Assessment • Six Technologies were analyzed • Automatic Vehicle Identification (AVI) • AVI using Laser Frequency • AVI using Radio Frequency (RFID) • AVI using Infrared Frequency • Automatic License Plate Recognition (ALPR) • Vehicle Matching • Automatic Vehicle Location (AVL) • GPS • Mobile Phone Location • Inductive Loop Detectors

6. Technology Comparative Analysis

7. Technology Comparative Analysis

8. Technology Selection Recommendations • Two technologies emerged as best candidates • Automatic Vehicle Identification - AVI --- RFID • Automatic Vehicle Location – AVL--- GPS • RFID was chosen for the Texas border crossings Why??

9. The Northbound Border Crossing Process at the U.S. / Mexico Border 1. Mexican Export Lot 2. U. S. FederalCompound 3. State Safety Inspection Facility Warehouse/ Yard Warehouse / Yard Mexican export documentation verification and cargo inspection selection Visual vehicle safety inspection CBP primary inspection (document inspection) Secondary inspection VACIS, X-Ray, FMCSA Others Detailed state truck safety inspection Mexican export cargo Inspection MEXICO U. S.

10. Technology Recommendations • Given that: • CBP already is using RFID technology and a large population of trucks have RFID tags, and • DPS is already implementing RFID technology • RFID was selected

11. Implementation • RFID Tags • CBP • DPS • Installation of al least 2 measuring locations • RFID readers • 1 before queue on Mexican side • 1 at exit of State Inspection Facility • Possibility of additional measuring locations

12. Proposed Measuring Locations Bridge of the Americas – El Paso/Ciudad Juarez *Optional

13. Proposed Measuring Locations The Pharr-Reynosa Bridge A= Mexican Export Lot B = US Federal Compound C = US State Inspection Facility t = Toll Booth R1 = Potential Measuring Location (Mexican Side) R2 = Potential Measuring Location (Mexican Side) R3 = Potential Measuring Location (US Side)

14. Delay = (observed truck crossing time)-(optimal truck crossing time) Measuring Border Crossing Delay

15. Next Steps • Technologies being piloted at 2 border crossings • El Paso Bridge of the Americas (BOTA) • Pharr-Reynosa Bridge • Developing information dissemination system • Self-sustainable system • Identify users • Develop a “Border Congestion Index”

16. Thank you, Merci, Gracias Juan Carlos Villa Manager Economics, Trade and Logistics Program Texas Transportation Institute 979-862-3382 j-villa@tamu.edu