EL PASO, Texas — The El Paso City Council on Tuesday, Nov. 10, signed off on a five-year, $72.5 million capital plan for the city’s three international bridges. It sets aside money for toll systems, traffic technology and pedestrian improvements at the ports of entry.
The program covers fiscal years 2027 through 2031 and applies to Ysleta-Zaragoza, Paso del Norte and Stanton-Lerdo, the three bridges the city owns. City officials said the work is meant to move traffic more smoothly, make walking safer and speed up toll collection.
The biggest line items are at Ysleta-Zaragoza. Smart traffic technology there accounts for $17.9 million, and it will put up digital signs and cameras that report conditions, closures and southbound wait times as they change. That project is already under construction and should be finished in the summer of 2027. Another $17 million is set for pedestrian and site upgrades at the same crossing, including shade canopies, marked drop-off zones, long-term parking, better crosswalks, a restroom plaza and a customer office for E-Fast Pass users. Toll systems at all three bridges get $6.2 million for new software and equipment.
GFT Inc. won a $3.75 million council-approved contract to study whether the Ysleta-Zaragoza port could be expanded and to draft a master plan. That contract falls inside a $5 million project budget paid for through the capital program, and the study will look at capacity, circulation and the future needs of commercial traffic.
A separate vote authorized the city to apply for federal Community Project Funding, requested through U.S. Rep. Veronica Escobar, for work at the Paso del Norte and Stanton bridges. The proposed study there would cost $4 million, with $3.2 million requested from Washington and the city putting up $800,000. The money has not been awarded.
City bridges director Roberto Tinajero said the spending is intended to prepare the crossings for future demand and improve the experience of travelers. The timing coincides with federal work to modernize the Americas port of entry and with plans to shift commercial truck traffic to ports outside the city center.
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