The International Mobility and Trade Corridor Project

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The International Mobility and Trade Corridor
Project
IMTC

• Gordon RogersDeputy Director Whatcom Council of
  Governments
• TBWG Vancouver, BC December 4, 2002

Gordon_at_wcog.org www.wcog.org
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The Basics

• IMTC is a binational, public-private planning
  coalition focused on identifying and promoting
  improvements to cross-border mobility in the
  Cascade Gateway.

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Overview

• The Whatcom Council of Governments.
• The Cascade Gateway region.
• IMTC structure, process, and objectives.
• IMTC accomplishments.
• Evolving issues.
• What has made IMTC work for this region?
• Where is IMTC going?

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Whatcom Council of Governments
A Cooperative Multi-jurisdictional Conference

• Voting Members
• Whatcom County
• Whatcom cities
• Whatcom Transportation Authority
• Port of Bellingham
• WSDOT

• Functions
• Metropolitan Planning Organization (MPO)
• Regional Transportation Planning (RTPO)
• Coast Millennium Trail
• National Scenic Byways
• Commute Trip Reduction
• International Mobility and Trade Corridor Project
  (IMTC)

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Peace Arch Pacific Highway Lynden-Aldergrove Sumas
-Huntingdon
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IMTC Organizational Structure
Lead Agency Whatcom Council Of Governments
Steering Committee25
Core Group45Makes decisions
General Assembly300Information and feedback
Issue-specific subgroups
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IMTC Core Group Participants

• Transportation
• U.S. Federal Highway Administration
• Transport Canada
• U.S. Federal Transit Administration
• WA State Department of Transportation
• B.C. Ministry of Transportation
• Port of Bellingham
• B.C. Transportation Finance Authority
• Whatcom Council of Governments
• WSDOT Advanced Technology Branch
• B.C. TransLink

• Private Sector
• Washington Trucking Association
• British Columbia Trucking Association
• Duty free stores
• NW Motor Coach Association
• Burlington Northern Santa Fe Railroad
• Amtrak
• Border brokerages

• At-border Municipalities
• Whatcom County, WA
• City of Surrey, BC
• City of Bellingham, WA
• Langley Township, BC
• City of Blaine, WA
• City of Lynden, WA
• City of Sumas, WA
• City of Abbotsford, BC

• Other Governmental
• U.S. General Services Administration
• B.C-WA Corridor Taskforce
• U.S. Consulate, Vancouver
• Canadian Consulate General - Seattle
• Local, State, Provincial, Federal legislators

• Inspection Enforcement
• Canada Customs Revenue Agency
• U.S. Customs Service
• Citizenship and Immigration Canada
• U.S. Immigration Naturalization Service

• Non-governmental
• Discovery Institute -- Cascadia Project
• Pacific NorthWest Economic Region
• Pacific Corridor Enterprise Council
• B.C. Chamber of Commerce
• Regional Chambers of Commerce (Bellingham,WA
  Cloverdale, BC Delta, BC)
• Tourism Victoria
• Vancouver Board of Trade

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IMTC Objectives for the Cascade Gateway

• Jointly
• Plan the Cascade Gateway as a system.
• Improve traffic data and information.
• Identify and fund needed improvements.
• Infrastructure
• Operations
• Technology
• Security

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Population Forecasts
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Regional Relevance of Exchange Rate
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(No Transcript)
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4th
Trucks
1stDetroit
2ndBuffalo-Niagara
5th
3rd Pt. Huron
2000 1,416 southbound trucks per day. 4th
busiest U.S.-Canada crossing. 2011 Forecast
2,655/day 87 increase from 00.
Southbound Trucks Pacific Hwy, 2000-2001
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Cars
3rd
2nd
5th
2000 9,129 southbound cars per day. 3rd busiest
U.S.-Canada crossing. 2011 Forecast 15,020/day 65
from 2000
4th
1st
Southbound Cars, Peace Arch 2000-2001
Southbound Cars, Pac. Hwy 2000-2001
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Pacific Highway Port-of-EntryPhoto US INS,
Blaine, WA
Brokerages
Duty Free Stores
US Customs
US INS
Brokerages
Canada Customs
Brokerages
Duty Free Stores
Brokerages
N
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IMTC Projects

• 1999
• Coordination of Binational Planning
• PACE/CANPASS promotion
• Cross-border Travel Study
• 2000
• ITS-CVO Phase II

• 2001
• Southbound ATIS
• Rail Study
• Abbotsford-Sumas Improvement Design
• Cross-border Regional Traffic Model
• Cross-Border Transit Study

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IMTC Projects

• 2002
• BC Hwy 15 NEXUS Lane
• Abbotsford-Sumas Construction
• Foothills Corridor Study
• Blaine Interchange Studies
• Pacific Hwy Truck Lane Design
• BC Hwy 99 NEXUS Lane Extension

• Weigh-in-motion software integration
• ITS-CVO III Concept of Operations
• NEXUS Marketing and Application improvements
• Cascade Gateway Operations Plan

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All IMTC Project Funding By Source 1999-2002
Total Funding 9,336,143
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All IMTC Project Funding By Source 1999-2002 With
SHIP
Total Funding 12,100,643
Estimated
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Accomplishments

• A trust-based forum.
• 5 years of sustained dialogue and consensus
  building.
• Identification and initiation of improvements
  aimed at shared objectives.
• Funding partnerships.

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Evolving Issues

• Changing border dynamics.
• Increased inspection activity.
• Emphasis of pre-approval programs.
• Growing importance of dedicated infrastructure.
• Increasing harmonization of U.S. Canadian entry
  processing?
• Upcoming facilities upgrades (Peace Arch,
  Aldergrove)
• FAST Free And Secure Trade

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Reasons for Success

• Mid-term funding
• Lead agency with permanent staffing
• Voluntary participation
• An issue-based forum with a bi-national and
  regional focus

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Where is IMTC going?

• A Re-authorization Border Program or Policy?
• More in-depth work with inspection agencies
• More emphasis on coordination in a more quickly
  evolving environment
• A finer balance of needs

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IMTCInternational Mobility and Trade
CorridorProject

• Thank you