Congress Votes to Block Unsafe Mexican Trucks From U.S. Highways

Teamsters Score Major Victory In Fight For Highway Safety


The Teamsters Union scored a major victory in the fight against keeping unsafe Mexican trucks off of U.S. highways, with Congress voting yesterday to further tighten restrictions on the Bush administration's pilot program, effectively delaying the reckless project.

"Democrats and Republicans alike heard loud and clear the driving public's overwhelming opposition to the Bush administration's reckless plan to throw open our borders to unsafe Mexican trucks," said Jim Hoffa, Teamsters General President. "I applaud Congress for acting quickly to keep our roads safe."

Additional restrictions on Mexican trucks traveling into the United States beyond the commercial zones, originally part of a House bill sponsored by Rep. Nancy Boyda, D-Kan., were added to the War Supplemental Appropriations bill. The funding bill passed the House by a vote of 280-142 and the Senate by a vote of 80-14.

The bill requires the Transportation Department's inspector general to make sure the department is able to impose U.S. safety rules and conditions on Mexican trucks that travel beyond the commercial zone.

The inspector general must also report to Congress whether the pilot program is hurting highway safety and whether safety laws are being enforced.

The bill requires the Transportation Department to tell the public exactly how it will make sure the pilot program is safe and that all drivers are able to speak English, as required by law. Transportation officials must also reveal how they plan to ensure Mexican truck drivers only pick up and deliver goods between the two nations, and not between two points inside the United States.