January 15, 2020

Chamber President & CEO Jerry Sanders attended a celebration for the completion of the San Ysidro Land Port of Entry expansion and renovation project which Jerry helped to advance as Mayor and then helped to secure funding in his position at the Chamber.

The $741 million project included the reconstruction of the northbound lanes; the addition of a pedestrian crossing on the port’s eastern side and expansion of the PedWest bridge; the realignment of southbound Interstate 5 lanes into Mexico; and the demolition and reconstruction of inspection areas and administration and pedestrian buildings.

At the ceremony, Congressman Juan Vargas and U.S. Ambassador to Mexico Christopher Landau thanked the Chamber for leading advocacy efforts for the completion of the project. The San Ysidro Chamber of Commerce also presented Jerry with special recognition for his work to advance the project as Mayor of San Diego.

The San Ysidro Land Port of entry is the busiest land border crossing in the Western Hemisphere with over 70,000 vehicles and 20,000 pedestrians commuting across the border every day. With estimates of vehicle traffic at the port of entry increasing 87 percent by 2030, the project’s completion enables border security agents to process border traffic efficiently, reduces border wait times, and supports future increases in border traffic.

The Chamber continues to work to advance border infrastructure projects that facilitate cross-border trade including the Otay Mesa East Land Port of Entry and a new rail port of entry facility in Tecate with pre-inspection capacity.