SAN DIEGO — The U.S. Customs and Border Protection has reopened a major pedestrian entrance at the United States-Mexico border after it was closed in early December due to increased illegal crossing attempts along the southwest border.
Diego Felix lives his life in two countries. The 15-year-old crosses the border early in the morning, leaving his home in Tijuana to get to high school in downtown San Diego.
His unique commute has been difficult since U.S. Customs and Border Protection closed the PedWest port of entry in December due to increased illegal crossing attempts.
Diego said he had to get up at 3 a.m. to make it to school on time, and he often had to wait up to three hours in line at a different crossing farther away.
“It was definitely horrible,” Diego said. “It was so bad, so bad. I was tardy many times.”
But on Thursday, travelers once again were able to use the PedWest border crossing in San Ysidro.
Richard Delgadillo is a single dad living in Tijuana who works in Imperial Beach every day. He said the reopening takes away a lot of stress from the past month.
“Chaos. Three to four hours to wait,” Delgadillo said of the PedEast crossing. “I literally did half a minute, half a minute on this side [PedWest]. It’s flowing. I mean, this is the way it should be.”
He said the commute can wear him down, but he is proud to be able to have an impact in both Mexico and California.
“Having the double nationality and being able to cross on that side, this side, it’s a blessing,” Delgadillo said.
Joaquin Luken is the executive director of Smart Border Coalition, a nonprofit trying to improve border mobility.
He said about 150,000 people cross the border every day in the San Diego region, and more than 60,000 of those people live in Tijuana and work in San Diego.
“This has a trickle up effect,” Luken said. “This doesn’t stay only in San Ysidro or in the south county. A lot of people that cross through here work in north county, downtown San Diego, East County.”
The border is just steps away from a vibrant shopping center and convenient public transit. Luken said the economic well-being of San Diego and Tijuana are tied together. He estimates border delays cost the region around $3.4 billion per year.
“If we have our borders strained, that just makes it harder and harder and people will shift and reconsider coming,” he said.
The PedWest operations will reopen seven days a week, with limited hours of operation from 6 a.m. to 2 p.m. The southbound facility will be open seven days a week, with limited hours of operation from 3 to 11 p.m.
In a statement, California Border Patrol said they have taken significant steps to surge personnel and resources to impacted sectors and address the challenges they are experiencing across the southwest border.
“Encounter numbers continue to fluctuate, as smugglers and bad actors continue to spread falsehoods and show complete disregard for the safety and wellbeing of vulnerable migrants. We remain vigilant and stand ready to ensure safety of our personnel, migrants, and local communities, and the security of our southwest border,” the statement said. “CBP consistently monitors reports of mass migration to the United States’ southwest border and stands ready to address any potential increase in migrant encounters. The fact remains: the United States continues to enforce immigration law, and our borders are not open for those without a legal basis to enter the country. Migrants attempting to enter without authorization are subject to expulsion under Title 8 authorities.”
Diego met his classmate, 15-year-old Daniel Vazquez, also coming from Tijuana, so they can ride the bus together.
“It made my day bad. The other line was like two hours of waiting, almost three,” Daniel said. “There was no line today though, and it was pretty cool.”
The two students said it took them both only ten minutes to walk across at PedWest, compared to their wait times at the PedEast crossing.
“I feel pretty good right now because I can wake up at 5 a.m. and cross at 6. Finally!” Diego said.
The San Ysidro Port of Entry is the largest land border crossing between San Diego and Tijuana, and the fourth busiest land border crossing in the world.