Here’s what experts say could be key in getting the U.S.-Canadian border reopened
Getting the U.S.-Canada border flowing again in a normal fashion is going to take some time, but it may be technology and different procedures that make the difference in making it happen.
Experts from both sides of the border discussed what it will take to reopen the border to non-essential travelers as well as future border travel during a Cascadia Innovation Corridor webinar event on Tuesday, Sept. 17. The event is now posted on YouTube.
While the closure of the border to non-essential travelers continues to be extended on a month-to-month basis (the current restrictions were extended to Oct. 21), the expectation among some of the panelists is that it will remain in place at least the next several months, easing sometime into 2021.
The restrictions to nonessential travelers, which began in March as COVID-19 took hold, has led to disruptions to the Whatcom County’s economy, particularly with retail and the Bellingham International Airport.
Christopher Sands, director of the Canada Institute at the Woodrow Wilson Canada Centre, said there is “a frozen border logic” now in place between the U.S. and Canadian governments that has resulted in very little momentum for even an easing of travel restrictions.
On the U.S. side, Sands said the focus remains on border security and limiting people coming into the country as well as the upcoming presidential election; in Canada, fear of U.S. residents bringing COVID-19 across the border has led to strong public opposition to easing restrictions.
Since easing restrictions appears to be off the table for the short-term, Sands said now is a good time to work on ideas on how to ease restrictions for when the two governments are ready to consider them.
The logistics of adding a health component to the border crossing process will certainly need some organizing. Would it mean providing proof of no symptoms? If there is a vaccine, would travelers need to show they’ve had the vaccine?
One of the challenges to be addressed is getting different agencies on the same page. While the border is operated by the two federal governments, the handling of the COVID-19 response, particularly in the U.S., has been tackled by state and local jurisdictions.
It’s not unprecedented that they can agree; Sands pointed out that the state of Washington and the federal government came up with a successful enhanced driver’s license program used for crossing the border.
Panelists said technology could be key to getting non-essential travelers through the border. Solomon Wong, president and CEO of InterVISTAS, a transportation consulting company based in Vancouver, B.C., suggested several models that could improve the flow across the border. Examples included eliminating some nonessential steps, using mobile phones more and processing travelers away from the border.
“There’s never been a better time to get to alternate solutions models,” said Wong, noting that we have the capability of trying things like high-definition video interviews, using technology to gather available information on a traveler and even virtual, online passports.
In this Cascadia region “we have some of the best innovators in the world in terms of border innovation,” Wong said, noting the development of the PACE program in the 1990s, which later evolved into the NEXUS program, to ease wait times.
This story was originally published September 21, 2020 at 5:00 AM.
