Standing outside the Presidio-Ojinaga port of entry, John Ferguson looks on as cross-border traffic trickles through the streets of Presidio, Texas.
Ferguson is the mayor of Presidio. He said his rural border town was picked as an additional port for 鈥渢ransmigrantes鈥� because Mexican officials felt, among other things, that the current port in the South Texas city of Los Indios was being inundated with traffic.
Transmigrantes make their livings towing secondhand goods from the U.S. across the Mexican border to their home countries in the hope of selling those items for a profit there. Often, they drive beat-up pickup trucks filled to the brim with things like ladders, old bathroom scales, washing machines and even motorbikes. Since late March, Presidio has been open to transmigrantes and the loads they carry.
鈥淭hey鈥檙e buying these vehicles in the United States,鈥� Ferguson said. 鈥淎nd they buy also other types of merchandise.鈥�
They bring their goods through Mexico to other countries, like Guatemala. Some are dual citizens of Guatemala and the U.S.
鈥淥nce they purchase all these things, they normally will have, like, a midsize Toyota pickup or something, and towing a second vehicle,鈥� Ferguson said. 鈥淎nd that鈥檚 how you can always spot them.鈥�
Bener Lopez works as a transmigrante. He would haul goods through West Texas before the pandemic.
鈥淗ere we have things we sell over there,鈥� Lopez said in Spanish at that time, pointing to the bed of his truck. 鈥淓verything is secondhand.鈥�
Along with the 1985 Toyota he was hauling, there were a few thousand dollars鈥� worth of goods in the truck. He said he鈥檚 done this kind of work for a few years and thanks God for the opportunity to provide for his family.
At one point, there were multiple ports of entry for transmigrantes along the Southwest border. But beginning in the early 2000s, transmigrantes were allowed only at Los Indios, where such crossings generally reach a few thousand per month.
During the pandemic, those numbers dropped but are now on the rebound, said Jared Hockema, the Los Indios city administrator.
鈥淭here are times that there鈥檚 a lot, there鈥檚 tons or there鈥檚 very few,鈥� Hockema said. 鈥淏ut they鈥檙e all crossing, you know, throughout the year.鈥�
That potentially means a lot of traffic for Presidio, . Mayor Ferguson said he鈥檚 concerned about how transmigrante traffic could impact daily life and the city鈥檚 only major highway, .
鈥淚t鈥檚 a two-lane, hilly road, and not many opportunities, not many passing lanes and, you know, just lots of places where people could get in trouble if they don鈥檛 drive prudently,鈥� Ferguson said.
But others in Presidio, a city with few industries, see transmigrantes as a potential boon to the local economy.
鈥淭here鈥檚 going to be a wide range of opportunities for not only the brokers, but for other people,鈥� said Presidio鈥檚 Isela Nu帽ez, an import-export broker who works with cross-border goods like machinery, cattle and vegetables.
She said her business is prepared to fill out the required paperwork for transmigrantes and the loads they carry, but is holding off on hiring new employees because it鈥檚 too early to know what the demand will be like.
鈥淚 think at the beginning, it鈥檚 going to be slow,鈥� Nu帽ez said.
Other local businesses are ramping up. One built a paid parking lot near the border to accommodate transmigrante trucks. Another is bringing in mobile homes where transmigrantes can stay the night.
Mayor Ferguson isn鈥檛 sure what this might mean for the local economy.
鈥淭he transmigrante traffic will contribute somewhat to our local tax base through fuel sales, food sales, things of that nature,鈥� he said. 鈥淏ut we鈥檙e not putting out our hopes that it鈥檚 going to be a gold mine for us.鈥�
The new crossing opened in late March, but so far, transmigrante traffic is still largely going through Los Indios.