Bazan: Pharr-Reynosa International Bridge is now crossing $50 billion worth of trade

MCALLEN, Texas – The director of the Pharr International Bridge has given an in-depth update on trade numbers.

Luis Bazan spoke at the August meeting of the South Texas Manufacturers Association. It was held at the DoubleTree Suites in McAllen.

Bazan said the Pharr Bridge has been in the news so much recently he did not know where to start with his power point presentation.

“We’re crossing about 1.2 million trucks a year through this bridge,” Bazan said.

“We cross $46 billion in trade. But it’s kind of like the census, there are folks that don’t get counted. And there are billions of dollars (of trade) that doesn’t get counted. So, we’re about $50 billion in trade.”

Bazan said these were 2023 numbers.

“By now we’re about $50 billion in trade. And, as you can see, month to month in 2024 we’ve been growing at an average rate of about three percent.”

Bazan thanked Ken Roberts of WorldCity, Inc., for utilizing Census Bureau statistics to provide the data that the Pharr Bridge Board uses in its marketing efforts in Mexico.

“As you can see, we had an increase of almost ten percent in imports in 2023. On the export side, we had an increase of almost four and a half percent. So, what does this mean? We’re trading almost $50 billion in trade with Mexico and the rest of the world.”

Of this trade, about 70% is manufactured or finished goods, 20% is fresh produce and perishables, and ten percent is energy industry related.

“A lot of people say, well, you guys are a produce bridge. Yes, we have been catering to the produce industry for many years. But as you can see, manufactured goods have a higher value. So, we’re going to continue crossing finished goods too at Pharr, not just perishables and produce.”

The Pharr Bridge is crossing slightly more trucks northbound than southbound, Bazan reported. A few years ago, it was the other way around.

During peak months, the Pharr Bridge crosses 3,200 trucks northbound per day. During the slower months it is about 2,700 per day. Southbound it is about 3,000 per day during the peak months and 2,500 per day during the slower months.

“So, all in all, we’re averaging about 5,000 or more conveyances or trucks inbound and outbound every day at the Pharr International bridge,” Bazan said.

The Pharr Bridge is best known for crossing fresh produce. Bazan reported that the bridge crosses 60 percent of fresh produce imports to Texas and 30 percent of that consumed across the U.S. as a whole. “It’s raining produce in Pharr,” he said.

The Pharr Bridge is ranked the number one land port of entry for produce. It is the third largest trade hub in Texas. It is seventh for total trade by value of product, and it is 29th in the nation, amongst all ports of entry, including airports and seaports. “So, pretty staggering numbers considering we might consider ourselves a small bridge,” Bazan said. “We’re going on 30 years in November. We’re very proud of it. We’ve been growing, but there’s more to come.”

During the power point presentation, Bazan played a video which he said shows the Pharr Bridge in continuous motion and continuous movement.

“If we’re building bridges, if we’re building infrastructure, if we’re trying to streamline the process of crossing commercial conveyances from Mexico to the U.S., back and forth, imports and exports, it’s about continuous movement,” Bazan said.

“We’re not building bridges and we’re not building infrastructure just to park trucks. We’re building infrastructure. We’re working with our federal partners and state partners to ensure that we continue to move trade and freight forward.”

Editor’s Note: Here is a video recording of Luis Bazan’s presentation at the South Texas Manufacturers Association meeting:

Editor’s Note: The above news story is the first in a two-part series on Luis Bazan’s presentation to the South Texas Manufacturers Association meeting. Part Two will be published on Sept. 3, 2024.

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