Twitter / @WholeMarsBlog
The Tesla exclusive border crossing connects Laredo to the Mexican town of Colombia, Mexico.
That dedicated border checkpoint lane is located at the Colombia Solidarity Bridge on Texas State Highway 255, connecting Colombia, Mexico, to the border town of Laredo. The development comes the same week Musk told the media and Wall Street that Telsa's vehicle plant near Austin is about to boost production.
"It was a simple incentive," Ivan Rivas, Nuevo Leon's Economic Minister, told Bloomberg. "What we want is a crossing that's much more expedited and efficient. And maybe there will be a lane for other companies in the future like there is for Tesla."
However, it remains unclear whether the incentive mentioned by Rivas was in the form of a cash payment by Musk's electric vehicle company or merely an uptick in economic activity for the northern Mexican state.
Even so, Rivas told Bloomberg he didn't not personally negotiate the deal and declined specific comment on the negotiations with Tesla.
Although Tesla suppliers now have a fast pass into Mexico, suppliers traveling north still will be required to go through U.S. customs along with other commercial cargo vehicles, according to reports.
"I checked with Laredo U.S. Customs and Border Protection trade operations management, and aside from the Free and Secure Trade (FAST) program and the dedicated lane for FAST participants, and the normal northbound cargo lanes, that is all that is available for northbound commercial trucks," CBP press officer Rick Pauza told Gizmodo.
Pauza also clarified that there's no special northbound lane into the U.S. from Mexico for Tesla passenger vehicles either.
The Mexican Corporation for the Development of the Border Zone of Nuevo Leon, the ministry responsible for the Tesla fast lane, was not immediately available for comment.
Stay on top of San Antonio news and views. Sign up for our Weekly Headlines Newsletter.
