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Cargo operations will halt at South El Paso’s Bridge of the Americas to support the increased processing of arriving migrants.

Starting from Monday, the US Customs and Border Protection’s (CBP) El Paso Office of Field Operations will suspend cargo processing activities at the Bridge of the Americas to facilitate the processing of migrants, focusing mainly on family units and unaccompanied minors. This suspension affects the cargo lot that usually operates from 6 AM to 2 PM, from Monday to Friday.

According to a news release from CBP, officers will be tasked with handling migrants who have reached between ports of entry during this period. Meanwhile, truckers are advised to utilize other cargo facilities in El Paso, such as those located at Ysleta, Santa Teresa, and Tornillo ports of entry.

This development comes after a series of actions in response to the increasing number of migrants arriving in the US.

Last week, Ped West, a walkway border crossing at the San Ysidro Port of Entry, was shut down to channel more officers into migrant processing duties. This pathway, which had reopened its northbound lanes around eight months ago following a closure since the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic, had to be closed because facilities in the San Diego vicinity were reportedly overburdened.