Just a few months before the U.S. is scheduled to reopen its border to Mexican long-haul truckers, a report has surfaced that indicates a large majority of trucks heading northbound into El Paso from Mexico have reportable defects.


According to a report by Fox News Latino, Texas Department of Public Safety inspectors found just over 1 million violations on about 1.2 million trucks inspected between 2007 and 2011 at the Bridge of Americas and the Zaragoza International Bridge.

However, many of those violations are likely multiple defects on single units, not the total number of trucks with problems.

And the report doesn't say how many of those trucks belonged to American-based carriers that were returning stateside.

As well, the majority of problems with equipment and drivers appears to be minor or clerical in nature.

Only 31,519 trucks and 625 drivers were placed out of service (OOS) as a result of these inspections. That's an OOS rate of 2.6 percent - well below the domestic U.S. and Canadian averages.

Mexican trucks entering the United States are restricted to a narrow 20-mile border zone. That changes in a few months when the Obama administration relaunches a cross-border program which allows carriers to haul across the U.S. if they comply with strict safety conditions.

Critics of the program are using the latest report to advance their complaints.

"This report confirms what we have been saying for years - Mexican trucking companies and their fleets are not held to the same stringent safety standards as American carriers," the Teamsters' Jim Hoffa told Fox News Latino.

However, State Rep. Joe Pickett, D-El Paso, countered by saying the number of violations Mexican trucks is in line with U.S. standards and in some cases are even better.

From Today's Trucking