Parking at Trader Joe’s is a little tougher... here’s an update on border traffic
Whatcom County is seeing a steady flow of Canadian shoppers, but the latest border data indicates it’s still way below pre-pandemic levels.
In the first week since Canada dropped its testing requirement for Canadians making short trips into the U.S., about 55,000 people have crossed north and south at the Blaine, Lynden and Sumas border crossings, said Laurie Trautman, director at the Border Policy Research Institute at Western Washington University.
For the same week in 2019, the total number of border visitors going north and south at those crossings was around 134,000.
“So, we saw a very large increase in cross-border travel last week compared to the previous year, but numbers still remain well below pre-pandemic trends,” Trautman said in an email.
While the uptick hasn’t brought border traffic numbers back to pre-pandemic levels, Trautman suspects that a higher percentage of those coming south were shopping. Anecdotally this past weekend she observed more cars with Canadian license plates at popular Canadian spots like Trader Joe’s, Ross Dress For Less and Sierra Trading Company.
Kathy McCrady, owner of Wee Ones Reruns Children’s Consignment store near Trader Joe’s, said she started noticing more cars in the parking lot over the weekend. While it’s made it tougher to find a parking spot, she’s happy to welcome back Canadian shoppers and consignors back to her store.
And last week was a busy one in Blaine, said Alan Finston, co-owner of The Vault Wine Bar. The city had a well-attended tree-lighting event and The Vault was able to add a lunch to the weekend because of the extra traffic.
“Overall a good start to returning to whatever new normal looks like,” Finston said in an email.
