Trucks carrying loads from 60 manufacturers will see their wait at the Canadian border cut from hours to as little as less than a minute under a new security program announced Tuesday.

The Customs-Trade Partnership Against Terrorism will let well-known businesses that use the border daily transmit information on truck cargo electronically to Customs computers. Normally, a routine paperwork check and basic interview between inspector and driver can take several minutes. Document reviews can take an hour or more, and physical searches average three hours. For the "fast-lane" loads, these will for the most part be a thing of the past. The goal is to let Customs inspectors focus on more high-risk loads.
To participate in the program, companies have to give Customs information about their trucks, contractors, drivers, suppliers and routes. Suppliers agree to boost security in their supply chains, including tougher employee background checks and more scrutiny of goods being shipped across the border.
The program has been in the works since well before the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks. Since the attacks, however, increased security at the border has made such a program even more important to the just-in-time businesses that depend on getting parts and supplies across the border. General Motors helped develop a pilot program with the Customs Service and has already equipped about 10 percent of its trucks with the "fast-lane" technology. The information is transmitted from the company to Customs about 15 minutes before the truck arrives at the border. Then a transponder on the truck is used to identify the shipment.
GM is only one of 60 companies that have joined the program, including Ford, Target, Sara Lee, Motorola and DaimlerChrysler. More than 100 applications are still pending.