Despite ongoing restrictions, vehicle crossings at Arizona border ports have continued to rise steadily.
Those restrictions, which bar nonessential northbound travel at U.S.-Mexico ports, have regularly been renewed monthly, most recently through Nov. 21. But after bottoming out in April, car crossings rose nearly 70% to more than 450,000 in Arizona’s six port cities in September, the most recent month of dataavailable.
“I do not believe that the increases in car and pedestrian traffic that we’re seeing are increases in Mexican nationals that are actually spending in our border communities, and/or in the interior of the state of Arizona,” said Jaime Chamberlain, chairman of the Nogales port authority’s board of directors.
Rather, he said the rise is likely explained by more U.S. nationals traveling to Mexico and then returning. Border towns like Nogales are heavily dependent on shoppers crossing from Mexico. Total Arizona pedestrian crossings have risen more modestly.
In September, vehicle crossings were around 62% of the previous five-year average for that month, while pedestrian crossings were at nearly 45%.
