Sonora, Mexico - Dirt has been flying along the US-Mexico border at Ambos Nogales since 2009 when renovations began at the 39-year-old Mariposa Land Port of Entry - the fourth busiest land port of entry in the US, handling more than half of the fresh Mexican produce consumed in America.

Billed as "The Port of the Future," the October 15th ribbon cutting on the $250 million project has made the future now for the most modern, most efficient, state-of-the-art port on the US-Mexico border.

Nogales is a prime location for just-in-time delivery for Mexico’s West Coast supply chain - the only place where two interstate highways (I-10 and I-19) meet the ever-growing commerce on Mexico’s Highway 15.

The port’s commercial lanes have been expanded to handle 4,000 trucks per day. New x-ray technology allows for rapid truck scanning. There are more than 50 commercial inspection dock spaces, plus numerous other improvements for passenger vehicles as well as pedestrian traffic.

As part of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act, 13 acres adjacent to the port were acquired to accommodate the expansion before the real demolition and new construction was underway.

Four-Billion Pounds of Produce

The Mariposa port has always been an important economic link between the two countries, but getting through the checkpoint was often time consuming.

"More than a decade ago, we all were saying our port was outdated with limited infrastructure and a footprint far too small," said Allison Moore of the Fresh Produce Association of the Americas. "When traffic flowed smoothly, all went well, but if one little thing misfired, the ripple effect of lengthy wait times kicked in."

Speaking on behalf of her 100-member trade group dealing with the growing, harvesting, importation, and distribution of Mexican produce, Moore said, "Decision-makers heard what we said and it didn’t slow us down even during the construction phase. They kept the doors open and the commercial lanes humming to keep things flowing and that’s important because we have four billion pounds of produce that passes through here annually. In tomatoes alone, if you put a year’s worth of crossings end-to-end, you’d circle the earth nine times in tomatoes. We need to move product rapidly."

Already one of the largest and busiest land ports in America - the main entry point for an estimated 60 percent of all winter produce consumed in America - the increased number of cargo lanes is expected to boost the capacity to more than twice the current per-day truck volume.

The Arizona-Mexico Commission reports that in terms of value, imports, and exports through this port, the total values are nearly $35 billion.

Speed Up Truck Traffic

All the renovations in the $250 million, eight-year-long design and construction project lead to one crucial factor - speed in processing with minimal delay at a port that already boasts the shortest wait times along the international border.

Not a bad record when you consider that annual northbound and southbound traffic combined represents over half a million trucks, close to two million cars, and another million pedestrians.

Those numbers make this entryway a veritable beehive of activity.

Back In The Day

Nogales Mayor Arturo Garino remembers when the original port was built in 1973.

"We expected 300 trucks a day to come through and now that number is 4,000 with even larger numbers still to come. This vision began years ago. A vision that grew into partnerships that had the tenacity to stay the course to completion. This port will make positive economic impacts for years - and some day we may wonder why we didn’t build it even larger. This port is the jewel of the Southwestern border."