U.S. Proposes Reopening Roads to Mexican Trucking Companies

The U.S. federal government may start allowing Mexican trucking companies to transport goods via U.S. roads in an effort to get Mexico to cut tariffs on some U.S. goods.

The U.S. Transportation Department on Thursday released a proposal outlining the conditions -- including driver background checks, as well as safety and vehicle emission standards -- that Mexican trucking companies would have to meet to operate in the U.S. The proposal doesn't include any specifics on a timeline or the number of trucks that would be permitted.

The federal government is hoping that reopening roads to some Mexican trucking companies could help resolve trade issues with Mexico, which enacted tariffs on 89 U.S. products after the Congress in 2009 declined to renew a pilot program allowing some Mexican companies to truck goods beyond a 25-mile commercial zone, the Associated Press reported.

Jim Hoffa, general president for the International Brotherhood of Teamsters transportation union, questioned the proposal, saying in a statement Thursday that opening U.S. roads threatens truck drivers' and warehouse workers' jobs and may worsen drug-cartel violence in the two countries.