San Diego Union-Tribune (Sunday)
FREEWAY LINKS SET THE STAGE FOR NEW BORDER ENTRY PROJECT
Connect Chula Vista, East County to Otay Mesa, ports of entry
Federal, state, and local officials celebrated another milestone in the new Otay Mesa East project with the completion of new freeway connectors that will improve movement of people and goods in the border region.
On Thursday, authorities from both sides of the border inaugurated the new southbound state Route 125 to eastbound state Route 905 and eastbound state Route 11 freeway connectors in Otay Mesa.
The $74 million project will provide a direct highway connection from East County and Chula Vista to the Otay Mesa area and both the existing and future Otay Mesa ports of entry.
“These connectors facilitate the movement of cargo, but also help us to keep the surrounding streets free of congestion,” said Mario Orso, project director with Caltrans.
The connectors are part of the $1 billion project to build the Otay Mesa East border crossing, also known as Otay II, scheduled to be completed by late 2024.
Unlike other ports of entry, such as San Ysidro, this new port of entry will require a toll to be collected on the U.S. side, outside the inspection point at the border. Revenue will be divided between the U.S. and Mexico.
Toll payment will offer an average waiting time of 20 minutes to get into the U.S., officials said.
The revenue will be used at first to cover construction expenses, and then, for maintenance and the addition of new technology, as well as for future expansion, said María Rodríguez Molina, project manager with SANDAG.
San Diego County Supervisor Nora Vargas noted that a new crossing will help reduce border wait times, improve air quality, and boost the region’s economy.
“This will give us hope for the future of the south region of San Diego,” she said.
On the Mexican side, a first phase investment of over $186 million was contemplated back in June for construction work and access roads. Last year, Mexican President Andrés Manuel López Obrador included the Otay II project within an infrastructure plan to reactivate the economy.
In the summer, California and Mexico signed an agreement committing to do their part to deliver the new border crossing on time.
The Mexican Consul General in San Diego and the U.S. Consul in Tijuana, Carlos González Gutiérrez and Tom Reott, respectively, even made a friendly wager about which of the two countries will finish its construction work first.
“I bet a bottle of tequila and he bet a bottle of bourbon to see which country finishes its part first,” González Gutiérrez said. “I am confident that we are doing very well on the Mexican side, and as you can see, the U.S. state and local side is also doing very well,” he added.
“This is a day to celebrate; these freeway connectors will ignite economic activity and create jobs on both sides of the border. It’s going to reduce congestion and border wait times ... so there are many reasons to be optimistic.”