Expedited lanes for college students now open at San Diego-Tijuana pedestrian border crossings

SAN DIEGO - Eligible San Diego higher education students commuting from Mexico can now cross the border faster through special lanes at the San Ysidro and Otay Mesa pedestrian ports of entry, U.S. Customs and Border Protection officials said.

Students enrolled in the pilot program, known as the Coordinated Access Program, or CAP, were able to begin crossing through the new lanes Thursday morning.

The program is intended to benefit students who would otherwise have to sacrifice sleep in order to stand in line early enough to avoid being late to class. School officials have noted that many higher-ed students choose to live south of the border due to lower living costs.

Some of the first students to use the designated lanes at the San Ysidro PedEast crossing said they got that extra time on Thursday. When asked by local media about the perks offered by the program, one Southwestern College student living in Tijuana called it "a godsend."

The program will initially be available only to students currently enrolled at Southwestern College, University of California San Diego and San Diego State University.

To participate, students must register through the CBP Link mobile app and submit biographical information, documentation and a photograph. Once approved by CBP, students will be able to use the expedited lanes, which school officials hope will reduce wait times from hours to minutes.

Participating schools have begun to post additional information on their websites indicating that students will also need an authorization code provided by the school during registration.

CBP previously said that the program would be open to U.S. citizens, permanent residents and individuals with certain nonimmigrant visas, such as student visas.

The CAP lane will be open from 6 a.m. to 10 p.m. at San Ysidro PedEast and Otay Mesa Port of Entry pedestrian lane. It will also be available at the Calexico West Port of Entry from 6 a.m. to 8 p.m.

"CAP integrates advanced technology, enhances inter-agency collaboration, and optimizes processes to ensure faster, more secure, and user-friendly travel," Sidney Aki, CBP's director of field operations in San Diego, said in a social media post.

Students in line must show their valid student ID for the current semester and their approved registration in the app. An officer will take a photo that auto-populates the student's information, expediting the entry process, a CBP spokesperson said.

The program, months in the making, was first announced in December at the launch of the CaliBaja Higher Education Consortium - comprised of schools, government agencies and other organizations on both sides of the border.

"I think (the program) could become another landmark pilot project for the region, just as SENTRI once was," said Joaquín Luken, executive director of the nonprofit Smart Border Coalition, which is part of the consortium.

Although there are currently no set plans, federal officials have said that there is potential to expand the program to other schools and age groups in the future.

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This story was originally published April 24, 2026 at 10:35 AM.