I have not seen any postings lately about border crossing times to and from TJ. I would sure appreciate an update. Also, where is the best place to purchase Mexican car insurance.

Thanks for your perspective.

I don't know if it's the best place to get insurance, but I think that easiest way to get it is online.

Go to links, then insurance. I believe that there is three or four companies listed there.

-snapper-

Sat. nite, very long wait. Got to the border at 12:30 am, got through at 2:10 am.

Sentri lane users are losing a lot of their advantage. In addition to them issuing cards to a lot of new drivers, they are upping their daily inspection checks from 70 to 700 cars per day. Basically every third time you go to secondary inspection now. Direct orders from Wash. D.C. HQ. Frustrating thing is once in secondary they don`t really check your car....just waste your time. I`m thinking they got a tip that a lot of big-time smuggeling was going on, or a "big wig" was turned down somehow for a card so outta anger he raised a large stink!

I have been sent to secondary twice in eight months. Not every third time and I cross back to U.S. at least 2-3 thimes a week.

You are right that they did not spend any time inspecting my car and I was delayed less than ten minutes each time.

According to Frontera there are now 45,000 sentri users and they're adding 2000 a month. On Mondays during the morning rush hour 7-8 the wait can be up to 50 minutes.

Reytj

Will I would encourage all, that the Sentri Pass is a bad deal and just save your money and go into the regular line

No, Ben the sentri is still a good deal for people like yourself ie people who never should have been accepted if it had remained true to its original intent but 9/11 changed all that.

Reytj

Yes, I too had been sent to secondary about 4 times per year. Now I have gone 5 times in the past two weeks, including 2 days in a row. The Officer said some commuters are being sent twice a day! Anybody ever have any 'luck' flirting w/ those female officers? One in particular is a real cutie & in that uniform!

Reyti,

I am not sure what you are talking about.

What does "true to its original intent" mean?

The application for Sentri Pass has no questions regarding the purpose of obtaining a Sentri Pass. They have no questions regarding are you doing business in Mexico. They have no questions regarding how many times a year or month you plan to cross the border. They have no questions regarding do you plan to be domociled in either the Mexico or the U.S.

Hey you Old Senile Bastard...There is a question asking the purpose of your need for the pass.

I doubt that the form was changed between the time that you and I applied.

There was NO question regarding purpose on my or my buddy Tomas's application. We even commented at the time, as to what would we put down as the purpose for needing the Pass.
I filled out the application in June of 2002 and received my Pass in Feb. 2003. It only took the Fed government 8 months to process my application.

I have never been arrested and have no record!! Our FEDERAL government workers at their best efficiency.

Sentri Line Sucks!

I arrived at the line at 7:14 P.M. this evening and it was all the way back to Hotel Pueblo Amigo! It took me twenty minutes to cross and that it about what it was taking the common people to cross.

I WAS WRONG.

Question number 7 read exactly as follows:

"Usual purpose of Entry"?

My answer was "Tourist".

SENILE Old Bastard with early stages of dementia...gets quickly angry when you yank his chain and claims he's got to go...

jocannonwhoknewhewasrightallalong

Last time I crossed back into the USA on a Saturday about 4 PM, it took about 2 hrs. Also, the "bike rental" scam was not available either. The border agent also gave me a lot of shit for not having a passport.

1. What are the best times to cross back into the USA now?

2. On the Dept of State web site, if I read correctly, you will not need a passport in TJ to come back into the USA until 06/01/09. If this is true, a drivers license should still be good until 05/31/09.

Would appreciate comments on the above.

Thanks.

MM

We took the bus back so most days it was an hour door to door. I was therelast week.

I have experienced long lines at the time you were crossing on Fridays and Saturdays. I don't know about the weekdays.

I usually cross back at midnight and aftewards on Thursdays, Fridays, and Saturdays and experience wait times under 10 minutes.

I miss the bike rental scam but lately wait times have been easy. It was the only way to beat the long lines.

I have been using my passport since a few months ago. I thought the law was in affect already. When it was DLs they never scanned it, but now they always scan my passport when returning. In all my years of going, I have never been to Secondary.

First of all I would not call the bikes a scam. If it was a scam, then it would not have worked. Today you can rent motorcycles or minibikes, I think for $20 to cross during busy hours.

You can use a Birth Certificate with your DL or a Passport or a Passcard to cross in the US from Mexico by car or foot. Many guys are doing it without a BC, and getting a flyer or sometimes a lecture and sometimes just waved through.

Generally Saturday and Sundays can be bad until 7 to 8 to cross. Last Sunday afternoon the line was very short, but that is the exception.

I see motorists from the San Diego area are now going across to buy gas at approx $1.00 gallon cheaper this week. That should add to the lines returning. Motor home drivers are saving $40-50 per tank making the trip well worth it.

Thanks guys.

MM

I crossed this Sunday night at 9:30pm and got across at 11:00pm in my car.

Similar story coming back from Nogales Mexico. If you are fool enough to cross into USA at 4 PM on a Saturday, then you will be standing in line for an hour. However, that is the time I cross into Mexico and there is never a line when I return to USA around 3 AM.

Current requirement for pedestrian crossing is a government issued picture ID plus proof of citizenship (e.g. birth certificate). I show a plastic "affidavit of live birth" that looks like a credit card. It really did get it from the state of Oregon about 20 years ago, but it looks like something I could make at home.

I also carry a passport, but never show it.

The last two Sundays have had short lines for the pedestrians in the afternoon....I wonder what the Saturday lines have been recently.

Are you trying the pedestrian crossing to the east of the railroad tracks near the action? Although it is only open until 6PM, it's a great alternate.

What city are you talking about? The two pedestrian lines in Tijuana are 24 hours.

I had to drop a friend at the TJ airport on Sunday, June 22nd, so I crossed at Otay in 30 minutes in my car. I got in line at 7:30pm and crossed at 8:00pm. I also passed by the San Ysidro entrance at 7:00pm and noticed very little traffic going back to the US. This is extremely unusual. Anyone have an idea why so little traffic on a Sunday?

They were probably all home upset because George Carlin had just died....... out of respect to the "Seven Words"

Sampson the prior post (albeit under TJ) from Hot4Ass2 stated "Similar story coming back from Nogales Mexico." and hence my reply was regarding Nogales and not TJ.

Hi Guys, I'm sorry if I missed an already existing thread but I was wondering about the current situation on crossing with just a drivers license. How big a hassle is it, how much hurt am I in for?

posted by Rocket at 5:51:08 08/31/12

this is cool
http://www.cbp.gov/xp/cgov/travel/wait_times

TJ Fans - San Ysidro is here:
http://apps.cbp.gov/bwt/rss.asp?portList=250401&f=html

Information on expedited Mexico border crossing can be found by clicking:
SENTRI Card & the GLOBAL Entry/Trusted Traveler Program

posted by Radioman at 18:37:41 10/07/12

Like a salmon returning upsteam, I am heading back to my first monger location Friday. I saw this on another site and wanted to see if it started and how it works. Anybody been there in the last few days?

"Effective Thursday, September 27, Mexico is changing the pedestrain crossing into Mexico. Previously, you came through on the west side of the southbound lanes. Now you will be coming through on the east side. The entrance is close to McDonalds on the San Ysidro side. Follow the signs, and you will pass through the border, and come out right in the middle of all the people heading back to the US! You pass thruough that line, and walk on what use to be the bus/limo portion of the street.

You can then either cross over the northbound traffic (Sentri and Ready Lanes) via the pedestrian bridge, or continue walking up to the previous drop off spot for taxis. "

Radioman

posted by Allover at 20:51:14 10/07/12

Yes the border crossing has been changed. To enter Mexico, you walk past McDonald's in the direction of Mexico. At the corner a few doors down from McDs make a left turn. You will enter Mexico on the McD's side of the border. There is a small, new indoor Mexican inspection facility you'll walk through. After you enter Mexico you are routed over the car lanes via the long standing pedestrian bridge. From that point nothing has changed.

Remember to enter Mexico by walking past McDonald's. The other side of the highway will get you nowhere.

posted by Bluefox62 at 0:09:51 10/09/12

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This will make parking for free at one of the trolley lots make more sense. No need to hike over the big new pedestrian overpass between the parking lots on the west side of I5 and the U.S. Port of Entry/McDonald's. It'll also make it easier to travel from SAN to TIJ for flights into Mexico or any other time you have more than a backpack.

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There is no reason to park on the west side of I-5 now. For the past few years I have parked in the $5 lot behind Jack-In-The-Box. I would guess this will be great for the parking lots east of I-5. No doubt they will be more crowded. The $5 lot behind Jack-In-The-Box had a 10 minute wait to enter on my last visit.

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Based on what I read in newspapers last spring, this will probably just be a temporary crossing. My understanding is that Mexico is close to completing construction on a new southbound Port of Entry that is actually located maybe 100 yards west of the current southbound auto lanes and formerly (based on this thread) southbound pedestrian lanes.

Problem is the U.S. hasn't yet constructed an express route to the new border crossing. Mexico could open the new POE now but southbound traffic would then be directed through San Ysidro surface streets and as you can imagine, it would be a gigantic cluster fuck. This could still in fact occur if the U.S. doesn't get it together to connect the I-5 to the new Mexico POE. This is especially concerning to me as I drive across the border. But for the time being, I would think that Mexico doesn't want further complications to keep people away, so may be going with this new setup as a temporary solution.

It will be a sure thing clust er fuck in San Ysidro if most of the people crossing south who have been parking on the west side of the freeway now start looking for spots on the east side which always had a small fraction of the number of spaces available on the west side.

For sure no matter exactly what precisely is going to happen, it is going to be a completely new world at the border.

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Not sure it is temporary, but there are plans to have another pedestrian crossing in 2005 on the other side...Just a little East of Las Americas Plaza. Expect parking prices to raise soon on the East side.

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