Tired of playing I-Spy and Would-You-Rather whilst tediously waiting in customs line-ups to get to the other side? Both American and Canadian governments have now polished and officiated a new pre-clearance deal for land, rail and sea travel.
After 9/11, border waits lengthened because of increased security measures implemented to avoid another tragedy. In 2001, according to an article written by the CBC, land travel to the U.S. decreased by a third. The 34 per cent decrease of vehicles passing through the border never recovered. According to the Toronto Star, “a study by Deloitte four years ago pointed to several reasons for a decline in Americans making the back-and-forth trip — one was border wait times, but the study also cited currency fluctuations and the opening of casinos on the U.S. side.”
Public Safety Minister Steven Blaney and Homeland Security Secretary Jeh Johnson finally signed the Agreement on Land, Rail, Marine and Air Transport Preclearance between the Government of Canada and the Government of the United States of America. This agreement has been in the works for years.
The U.S. Department of Homeland Security press release declares this new deal “will benefit travelers and trade by reducing congestion and increasing efficiency at the border.” Every day, nearly 400,000 people cross the Canada–U.S. land border with over $2 billion in goods and services, according to the Canadian government website. That’s a lot of people and a lot of stuff waiting for their turn to get to the other sider.
This agreement means that travel between countries will be, in theory, less of a hassle. It has been already implemented in several Canadian airports like Vancouver, Toronto and Montreal, where people can clear their goods and avoid the U.S. customs line up when they land. This convenience will now extend to land, rail and sea.
“This historic new agreement builds on decades of successful preclearance operations in Canadian airports. It will enhance the security at our border and create jobs and growth in Canada by improving the flow of legitimate goods and people between our two countries.” Minister Blaney said in the same DHS press statement. This agreement was originally a part of the Beyond the Border Action Plan which was being worked out in 2011 but Harper and Obama neglected to meet the deadline in 2012.
So what does all the jargon really mean for us Canadians?
This agreement allows both governments to set up pre-clearance stations where customs agents can clear travellers on their baggage or goods away from the border. This will help reduce the bottle neck at border crossings. It also means armed customs agents, from both countries, can be on each others soil. But neither are allowed to make arrests since they are not under peace officer status. They can only detain subjects until law enforcement from the residing country arrive.
At this time, it still needs to be approved by the U.S. Congress as well as the Canadian Parliament. Meanwhile neither of the governments have specified when, where or how any of it will be implemented.
Written by: Sarine Gulerian
Photo Credit: Mark Hodson Photos
