US-Mexico rail crossing receives final report before highly anticipated construction — here's what we know

Two new planned bridges across the Rio Grande have come a step closer to reality as a federal agency issued its final environmental impact report on the project. 

The project includes proposals for a new rail bridge and a new road bridge for commercial motor vehicles, both of which would cross the Rio Grande, the famous river known more commonly as the Rio Bravo in Mexico, on the border between the U.S. and Mexico. 

The proposed rail bridge would be part of a 19-mile rail route connecting Eagle Pass, Texas, with Piedras Negras, Mexico, according to TrainsPRO.

The proposed road bridge also would include the necessary border inspection facilities, which would be built on what is now agricultural land, according to the final environmental impact statement issued by the federal Surface Transportation Board.

The project seeks to expand upon what Yahoo! Finance called in 2024 the "fastest-growing border crossing in the U.S.," with trade increasing 22% year-over-year from the first quarter of 2023 to the first quarter of 2024. 

At the time, the massive growth put the Port of Eagle Pass atop a list of 450 airports, seaports, and ports of entry, according to Yahoo! Finance. It is a remarkable feat for a city with under 30,000 residents as of the 2020 census. 

In 2024, Eagle Pass registered $43.75 billion in two-way trade, up from $37.14 billion in 2023, an increase of over 17%. 

"No other border crossings are growing at the rate of Eagle Pass," said Ken Roberts, CEO of WorldCity, at an Eagle Pass trade summit in 2024, per Yahoo! Finance. 

The proposed rail and road bridges seek to expand that growth even further.

"The main reason that I've seen the growth in Eagle Pass … is related to rail," said Ben Escarcega, director of contract logistics and transportation at Yusen Logistics, at the 2024 trade summit, per Yahoo! Finance.

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As of 2024, Union Pacific and BNSF Railway operated between 15 and 18 trains that crossed the currently standing Eagle Pass-Piedras Negras International Railway Bridge on a daily basis. 

The proposed project, known as the Puerto Verde Global Trade Bridge, would greatly expand this capacity by adding not only the additional rail bridge but also the road bridge for commercial trucks.  

The National Environmental Protection Act of 1969, known commonly as NEPA, requires that the Surface Transportation Board and other government agencies conduct detailed analyses of the environmental impacts of proposed projects prior to beginning construction.

The groundbreaking law sought to ensure that government agencies took into account environmental considerations when weighing various projects and proposals, something that had not been required previously. The key aspects of NEPA's environmental review process have since been adopted by other jurisdictions, such as under the California Environmental Quality Act.   

To comply with NEPA, agencies must first prepare a so-called "environmental assessment," which determines whether or not a proposed project will have an environmental impact. If the answer is yes, NEPA requires the agency to produce a much more detailed environmental impact statement.

Expanding cross-border trade between the U.S. and Mexico at Eagle Pass would mean good news for both countries, growing their economies and creating new jobs on both sides of the border. 

Experts have urged Eagle Pass to stay the course, remembering what led to the port's massive growth in the first place. 

"Don't chase after another city, don't chase Laredo, don't chase San Antonio," said Carlo Molano, a real estate expert, during a panel discussion at the 2024 trade summit, per Yahoo! Finance. "You have to look at your strengths and your weaknesses, understand them and play off of them." 

"Don't try to become something that you're not," he continued. "Become a better version of who you are." 

Thanks to a nearly 60-year-old federal law, officials are legally required to take environmental considerations into account when determining what that "better version" of Eagle Pass will look like. 

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