World Trade Bridge Laredo: A Month of Customs Failures

What happened

The World Trade Bridge in Laredo has had a rough month. The newspaper El Mañana of Nuevo Laredo reported on Oct. 5, 2026, that customs failures have hit the bridge one or more days every week for a full month.

The World Trade Bridge is the busiest cargo bridge between Laredo and Nuevo Laredo. When it stops, the whole border feels it.

Here is what the paper counted:

• Sept. 8: Mexico's national customs system went down. Trucks were stopped for more than 7 hours. In the next days, lines grew to about 30 kilometers. They backed up onto Bob Bullock Loop (Loop 20) and Mines Road in Laredo.
• Sept. 15: The national system failed again in the afternoon. Laredo Police closed access to the bridge so the jam would not get worse.
• Sept. 23: The power went out at Nuevo Laredo customs before 1 p.m. Traffic backed up on Loop 20, the Mines Road area and northbound I-35.
• Oct. 2: A new required step started on Friday afternoon. It is called the AVC with DODA. The AVC is the crossing notice, and the DODA is the Mexican customs dispatch document. Officials said the system is still in final testing.
• Oct. 4: On Saturday morning, the failures came back and lines formed again.

The worst day was a Wednesday. Drivers waited more than 6 hours. Few booths were open for standard cargo on the U.S. side. The line went past the Anáhuac highway entrance on Nuevo Laredo's beltway.

The paper named four causes: national system failures, local power outages, too few open booths, and tests of new procedures like the DODA.

What it means for owner-operators

If you cross freight at Laredo, time is money. A 6-hour wait can eat your hours of service and push back your next load. The paper also said these jams bring money losses, longer workdays and daily safety risks on the road for transfer drivers and carriers.

This matters beyond Texas too. A huge share of U.S.-Mexico freight moves through Laredo. When the World Trade Bridge slows down, loads from all over the country run late.

The new AVC with DODA step is the part you can control. If your paperwork is not ready, you can be stuck even on a good day.

What to do next

• Talk to your customs broker today. Ask if your loads are ready for the AVC with DODA step. Do not wait until you are in line.
• Check wait times before you go. CBP posts free, live wait times for the World Trade Bridge and the Colombia Solidarity Bridge at bwt.cbp.gov. Early in the morning both cargo bridges show closed, which is normal overnight.
• Plan your hours. Leave room in your logbook for a long wait. Carry water, food and a charged phone.
• Have a backup bridge in mind. The Colombia Solidarity Bridge also takes cargo. Ask your broker if a switch makes sense for your load.
• Keep your own file clean. Border delays are bad enough without a missing filing. Our trucking filing guide shows what your authority needs to stay active.

We will keep watching the bridges and share what changes.