Methodology for the Development of Binational Driver and Vehicle Database (SWUTC/03/167724-1)

The implementation of advanced transportation and trade information systems at the U.S.-Mexico border will confer benefits upon public and private sector stakeholders in both countries. But the ultimate success of these systems depends on their ability to deliver comprehensive and accurate information to authorized parties in a timely fashion. Much of this information will be sourced from existing databases that are planned for intergation into broader frameworks. The persistence of information gaps and stakeholder disconnects underscore the need for a thorough review of existing information, and an assessment if outstanding data collection and integration needs. This research focuses on two of the most critical data elements in the border-crossing systems, commercial driver and vehicle information. The study team identified potentially valuable tractor, trailer and driver data components not currently available or accessible to border stakeholders, and proposed how they might be intergrated into overarching systems. The strategies presented enable the development of binational driver and vehicle databases that accelerate the processing of safe, legitimate trade, while establishing increasingly impermable barriers to dangerous or illegal cross-border movements.