The Laredo, Texas , City Council approved on June 15, 2026, by a vote of seven to two, a phased increase in toll rates for the international bridges, effective from January 2027 to January 2029, with an automatic annual adjustment beginning in 2030. The decision was made against the recommendation of the Laredo Port of Entry Advisory Committee and generated public rejection from at least three representative organizations in the sector: the Nuevo Laredo Freight Carriers Association (ATC) , the Laredo Motor Carriers Association (LMCA) , and the Association of Logistics & Forwarding Agents (ALFA), which represents freight forwarders and logistics companies.
The controversial decision by the Laredo City Council was voted against by Mayor Victor Treviño and Councilwoman Alyssa Cigarroa but approved by the majority, who based their vote on Ordinance 2026-O-114. The city government argues that inflation, labor costs, maintenance, technology, insurance, public safety, debt service, and infrastructure have increased substantially since the last rate update (2017) for commercial and pedestrian tolls (2013) for non-commercial vehicles . Therefore, they proposed a phased increase plan as a responsible alternative to a single, much larger adjustment.
It should be noted that the main users of the Laredo international commercial bridges ( World Trade Bridge in Laredo and Solidarity in Colombia) have publicly rejected this increase.
ATC, LMCA, and ALFA all rejected the toll increase, though each from a different perspective: ATC focused its objection on the City Council’s disregard for the recommendation of its own Port of Entry Advisory Committee, which voted 12 to 1 against the increase, and on the inappropriate timing given the uncertainty surrounding the review of the United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement (USMCA); ALFA was more emphatic regarding leadership, noting that the decision sends the wrong signal to those who generate employment and investment and that efficiency alternatives should have been explored before passing the cost on to the user; and LMCA, with the most conciliatory tone of the three, did not oppose the need for infrastructure funds but rather the process followed , highlighting that the city collected approximately $88 million in tolls in 2025, of which, by a 1998 resolution, roughly half is transferred to the general municipal fund instead of being prioritized for the operation and expansion of the bridges themselves. They agree that the decision was made without exhausting alternatives and without listening to the sector that best knows the daily operation of what is recognized as the most dynamic land crossing for goods in America, which concentrates about 42% of the trade between Mexico and the United States and with a daily crossing, just through the World Trade Bridge, of between 16 and 18 thousand tractor trucks.
Use of the increased resources
However, it is important to note that while the ordinance states that the first priority of the bridge system’s revenue is operation, maintenance, rehabilitation, technological modernization, public safety, debt service, reserves, and infrastructure preservation, the same text recognizes that the bridge system must continue to generate revenue for municipal purposes “authorized in accordance with city policy,” meaning that the historical transfer to the general fund is neither modified nor limited.
Not everything is gray.
Something to highlight in the ordinance presented to the City Council is that the municipal government of Laredo is obligated to present an Annual Performance Report detailing income, expenses, debt, reserves, crossings, among others.
But perhaps the most important commitment assumed by the government and the City Council is the clause on extraordinary economic conditions, which indicates that the City Council can postpone, suspend, or modify future adjustments in the face of federal tariffs, changes to the USMCA, changes in the operation of CBP or Mexican customs, recession, pandemics, or supply chain disruptions.
They also proposed the mandatory review of the tariff study every five years at most and the authorization of commercial traffic management programs through incentives for peak/off-peak hours, volume, seasonal or promotional prices.
What’s coming
Although the increase might be considered marginal, it does reduce the competitiveness of the International Bridges and could make other crossings attractive for goods that do not depend on this route.
While customs agents or logistics operators will not pay this toll directly, they will be pressured with tariff adjustments by the trucking industry.
The aforementioned clause for an automatic 4% increase starting in 2030 fails to consider future scenarios of uncertainty, such as those experienced this year under the Trump administration. Trade dynamics cannot be dictated by decree. If, by then, the USMCA faces adverse renegotiation or new tariffs, this automatic increase could strike the sector at its most vulnerable moment.
What we will see in the coming days or months is increased pressure from the foreign trade sector to truly be taken into account in such crucial decisions that directly impact its competitiveness. But above all, we will see increased pressure to create a more cohesive bloc that promotes a more efficient revenue-sharing formula for bridges, one that is exclusively earmarked for the costs of infrastructure, technology, operation, and administration of international bridges, and not for municipal operating expenses.
*Eleazar Ixba is a marketing and institutional communication consultant with more than 25 years of experience in transportation and logistics, with a focus on cross-border issues.
Connect with Eleazar on LinkedIn.
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