Border services

Sarah Rennie – LJI reporter

Travellers who frequently use the Trout River or Herdman border crossings to enter the United States are in for a shock.

The Canada Border Services Agency (CBSA) announced on Monday that it would be adjusting the service hours at 35 land ports of entry across the country as of January 6, 2025. This is being done in collaboration with U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP), which is adjusting its service hours at 38 ports of entry.

In the Haut-Saint-Laurent, the hours of service at the Trout River crossing, which connects the municipality of Elgin to Constable, New York, will permanently be reduced by half – from the current 24 hours to 12, between 6 a.m. and 6 p.m. The Herdman crossing, which links the municipality of Hinchinbrooke with Chateauguay, New York, will also be limited to between 6 a.m. and 6 p.m.

The Lacolle Route 223 border crossing at Rouses Point in New York will similarly see its hours reduced, from 24 hours to 12: 8 a.m. to 8 p.m.

In a statement, the CBSA said the changes will enhance overall security for both countries. “It will allow the CBSA to use its resources more efficiently by deploying officers at busier ports of entry. This will support the CBSA’s ability to process travellers and goods as well as to manage enforcement activities.”

The service hours at the three connecting U.S. ports of entry will now align with the Canadian hours of operation. The CBSA said this “will allow both countries to return inadmissible travellers and goods to the other country, which is more difficult when one side of the border is closed while the other remains open.”

The CBSA maintains the change is based on an “analysis of operational pressures, peak periods, and services required at the ports of entry, to minimize the impacts on border communities.”

According to the CBSA, the ports of entry process an average of two or less vehicles or commercial trucks per hour during the period they will no longer be in operation. The CBSA notes that alternative border crossing options exist within a 100-kilometre radius, notably at the Dundee-Fort Covington and the Hemmingford-Mooers ports of entry.

‘A misguided decision’

The Customs and Immigration Union (CIU), which represents CBSA officers and personnel, is demanding the agency reverse its decision. Union president Mark Weber referred to the move as an “incredibly misguided decision.” In a statement, the CIU said the decision was made without consulting frontline officers working at the affected ports, or the border communities in which the crossings are located.

A CBSA employee, who spoke with The Gleaner on condition of anonymity, confirmed that employees at the affected border crossings were given no advance warning of the reduction in hours. They said that officers were told they would not lose their jobs, but that some would be relocated to larger ports. “Our personal and family lives will be sacrificed because of this,” they added, noting the long commute that may be imposed on border service agency officers.

“Most locals think this is temporary, but it’s not. It’s permanent,” they pointed out, noting that while the custom offices will be closed at 6 p.m., travellers should not expect to cross up to the last minute. “It will be more like 5:30 or 5:45 p.m.”

The officer is concerned that security along the border will be impacted as well. “We are actually stopping people from coming in, criminals, drugs, and guns,” they said, while questioning how leaving a nearly 80-kilometre stretch of the border less secure overnight improves security.

Impact on families and the economy

Elgin director general Guylaine Carrière said the CBSA contacted her about the reduced hours. She says members of the council expressed their disappointment with the decision when she relayed the news, noting it will be a discussed during the regular meeting in December.

“I find it very, very early,” said Carrière of the 6 p.m. closing. “It will have a major impact on a lot of the families here in Elgin,” she added, while suggesting there will no doubt be consequences for the local economy as well. She was also taken aback by how soon the changes will come into force, noting the timeframe does not give people and businesses much time to adapt.

Carrière said she spoke with the CBSA about the fire-rescue mutual aid agreements that exist on both sides of the border, and was told a procedure would be put in place to allow first responders to cross at all hours in the event of an emergency. She admitted that while this is positive news, there were delays in response times when the border was closed during the pandemic.

The reduced hours are problematic for those who live on one side of the border but who work on the other, or who cross regularly for work. For Rick and Kenny Van Winden, who own land and farm in Chateauguay and Burke, New York, the new hours will be particularly challenging.

“They have been combining there for the last couple of weeks, and they are not home until 11 or 12 at night,” said Natalie Wattie, who is married to Kenny. “It is going to cause some problems, because while some springs and falls are ok, some are not. If you are planting and missing that window because you can’t cross, then you can’t get your crops in on time,” she explained.

“There is never a time when they are done at 5:30 p.m.,” Wattie added, noting the detour to Hemmingford or Dundee on a tractor would be “insane.”

Politicians express concern

New York State senator Dan Stec issued a statement on November 21 blasting the decision. “You can’t have a part-time border!” he exclaimed; while highlighting the disruption this will cause to the unique relationship that exists between communities, referring specifically to the mutual-aid pacts in place. The senator also pointed to the “turmoil” created in the region by irregular immigration, to suggest the move will impact the safety of those living along the border.

New York governor Kathy Hochul has publicly stated her opposition to reducing operating hours at the border, calling on the CBP to reverse its decision.

 On the Canadian side, Salaberry-Suroît MP Claude DeBellefeuille has also come out against the CBSA’s decision. “I cannot support a reduction in service that will have an impact not only on citizens, but also on businesses in our region,” she said, while decrying the lengthy detours this will entail. “I am already getting calls from businesses expressing their dissatisfaction,” she added.

“We know that there are major issues at the border,” said DeBellefeuille. “It strikes me as an odd time for the Border Services Agency to cut their services.”

The MP is now asking citizens and businesses who are affected by this announcement to contact her team so they can document the impact of the CBSA’s decision in the region.

Those interested in sharing their story can contact DeBellefeuille’s office by email at: claude.debellefeuille@parl.gc.ca.