AASHTO Journal, 4 October 2013
The Texas Department of Transportation last week celebrated the opening of the first mile of FM (Farm to Market) 396 in South Texas, which, once completed, will increase economic opportunities in Texas through its trade with Mexico.
“The opening of FM 396 will help reduce congestion and save time for international travelers, including commercial traffic that carries many commodities both countries depend on,” said TxDOT Executive Director Phil Wilson in a statement. “Enhancing the mobility of goods across national boundaries is mutually beneficial and offers great promise for creating jobs in this region of our state.”
TxDOT officials say the FM 396 project will improve the transportation network that allows for the movement of goods from Mexico across the Anzalduas International Bridge. The finished roadway will include a four-lane divided highway with frontage roads and overpasses at FM 1016, Trinity Street, FM 494, and US 83, expanding traffic capacity for passenger vehicles and freight alike. Before the project began, FM 396 only carried two lanes of traffic.
The project will be beneficial to help crops get to their east coast destinations sooner. Currently, crops grown in areas of western Mexico are shipped north to Nogales and then into Arizona where they travel east. The new FM 396 will help trucks enter the U.S. in the Rio Grande Valley, saving about 10 hours in delivery time for those products.
Texas and Mexico have a strong trade relationship, as Texas exports more than $86 billion in products to Mexico and more than 463,000 Texas jobs depend on trade with Mexico.