With assistance from TMAC, the City is evaluating each bridge to identify Lean Six Sigma projects that would positively affect the bridge crossing times for commercial vehicles. In the future, similar efforts will be directed to the areas of passenger vehicles and pedestrian crossings. These projects are intended to make improvements at the Ports of Entry and reduce wait times in a safe and secure manner.
This program is a reimbursable program that allows the City of El Paso to pay for Customs and Border Protection overtime, ensuring all lanes of City-owned ports are staffed during peak hours in an effort to reduce wait times.
El Paso was chosen as one of five cities to participate in this five-year pilot Public-Private-Partnership (P3) Program with Customs and Border Protection. The additional service hours are funded by the tolls travelers pay when crossing the border. The City Council authorized Section 560, which covered the P3 reimbursable fee agreement, in December 2013.
Currently, the City of El Paso’s International Bridges Department manages databases analyzing the P3 Program and all bridge investments to determine the return on investment. The City Council receives reports with the data analysis. The Department endeavors to work around data constraints, develop and update performance measures, and implement additional research methodologies to provide a clearer understanding of the benefits of the P3 Program and related projects.
