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November 1, 1999 9:41 AM, EST

LOS ANGELES — How prepared is the United States is to handle an influx of Mexican trucks once the southern border opens? At the National Transportation Safety Board’s three-day public hearing on just that question, the answer was: not very.

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The Department of Transportation’s own Office of Inspector General laid into DOT for failing to devote adequate resources to beefing up inspection personnel and facilities at the border.

“There is a cultural problem within the Office of Motor Carriers over who exactly is responsible for safety at the four border states,” Deputy Assistant Inspector General Patricia J. Thompson told the board. “OMC says it’s a state problem. The states say [the North American Free Trade Agreement] is a federal law, so they will not staff the border. There’s just a lot of finger-pointing.”

The hearing, held Oct. 18 to 22, brought together officials from industry, public advocacy groups, organized labor and the U.S. and Canadian governments to discuss safety standards, hours-of-service regulations, commercial driver license issues and the medical certification process as well as oversight and exchange of data across the borders.

For the full story, see the Nov. 1 print edition of Transport Topics. .