‘Crucial connector’: Expansion of South Texas international bridge signed into law

McALLEN, Texas ( Border Report ) — Legislation to expand the privately-owned Starr-Camargo International Bridge, which connects Rio Grande City, Texas, with Ciudad Camargo, Mexico, has been signed into law.

President Joe Biden on Friday approved the Starr-Camargo Bridge Expansion Act, which had passed both the House and Senate over a year ago, and had been sponsored by border and Texas lawmakers in both chambers.

”We’re very happy with this. This was the last thing we needed,” Sam Vale, president and owner of the Starr-Camargo Bridge Company, told Border Report on Tuesday.

His company owns the two-lane bridge, which now has been given the green light to expand up to 14 lanes over the next 65 years as long as they meet U.S. environmental regulations, Vale said.

Vale said because the bridge was built before current presidential permitting for international bridges, they had originally been granted a five-year timeline for construction. But international bridges are costly and complicated to build and expand, requiring buy-in from multiple agencies. This law allows them the ability to add on — if all regulations are met — bit by bit until the year 2089.

”We didn’t want to go back to the well to get two more lanes authorized every time,” Vale said.

Vale plans to add two northbound lanes from Mexico, and two southbound lanes southbound in the near future. He also would like to build a railroad bridge at this location and he says he already owns a short-line railroad connecting Mission to Rio Grande City that could expand binational trade if it connected south to Mexico.

Vale is 81 now and the bridge company was started by his father. He tells Border Report that he plans for future expansion to be overseen by his son, who is vice president, and is being groomed to take over the company.

“The proposed expansion project will ease congestion, reduce truck idling at the port of entry, and help alleviate supply chain issues,” U.S. Rep. Henry Cuellar, D-Texas, who represents Starr County and filed the original legislation in the House in 2023, said in a statement.

Cuellar says the bridge “serves as a crucial connector between South Texas and Mexico.”

“As an important trade route between the U.S. and Mexico, the Starr-Camargo Bridge has made significant contributions to the economy of South Texas and the nation,”  U.S. Sen. John Cornyn, R-Texas, co-sponsor of the legislation in the Senate, said in a statement. “ Now that this legislation has been signed into law, we will be able to help resolve traffic congestion and supply chain issues, improve efficiency, and ensure U.S. trade continues to grow.”

Starr County Judge Eloy Vera said the Starr Camargo Bridge Expansion Act is a significant step to promoting efficient cross-border commerce.

“In addition, the ability for multi-module growth will greatly increase the capacity for diverse trade and enhanced economic opportunities,” he said. “We congratulate everyone involved in making this effort a reality,”

The American Trucking Associations also applauded Cornyn and Cuellar their efforts to expand the Starr-Camargo Bridge

“By increasing the capacity of this critical link in the supply chain, this legislation will help prevent truck drivers from being stuck in traffic, catalyze the return of manufacturers to North America, and support businesses and farmers on both sides of the border,” said Henry Hanscom, senior vice president of legislative affairs for the American Trucking Associations.

The expansion legislation occurred just days before the mayor of McAllen signed a memorandum of understanding with the governor of the Mexican state of San Luis Potosí to also expand cross-border commercial trucking in the Rio Grande Valley using the Anzalduas International Bridge, which is located about 40 miles southeast of the Starr-Camargo International Bridge.

Sandra Sanchez can be reached at SSanchez@BorderReport.com.

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