After years of long wait times to cross the border at the San Ysidro Port of Entry’s Pedestrian East facility, people are hopeful they’ll soon get a break.
“It wouldn't be such a burden to cross back,” said Ivan Gomez, a San Diego resident. “I would more comfortably go down there and more often even.”
The Pedestrian West facility at the San Ysidro Port of Entry reopened to foot traffic Monday, giving travelers one more option for crossing into the U.S.
“I think it'll shorten the time span on both lines and I think it will make it a shorter trip for people who work and come to school here in San Diego from over there,” said Gomez.
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According to the Smart Border Coalition, about 20,000 people cross through San Ysidro’s PedEast every day.
“It just is more inviting at the end of the day,” said Gustavo de La Puente. “You want more ports open, you know, easier crossing, less crossing time.”
De la Fuente, a board member with the coalition says PedWest used to see around 8,000 travelers every day when it was open. He expects the same will be the case now, taking a load off the PedEast facility.
“It really opens up a more practical way for many people to cross that border,” said De la Fuente.
But while practical for some, PedWest’s reopening is also inconvenient for others.
“I really believe that the impact is going to be negative because right now we have 100% of the traffic that goes back and forth on this boulevard,” said Irwin Palacios.
Palacios owns Maya’s Pizza and Tacos on San Ysidro Boulevard.
He says the closure of PedWest has provided him with a larger flow of foot traffic. Now that it's reopening he worries he’ll lose it and with that, his business.
“I’m getting prepared,” said Palacios. “I’ve told my staff that I will probably have to start cutting hours if it starts dropping.”
PedWest will reopen with limited hours, operating from 6 a.m. to 2 p.m.
PedWest first opened to the public in July 2016 as part of the $741 million expansion of the San Ysidro Port of Entry. It closed its doors to the public in April 2020 due to the pandemic.
