BROWNSVILLE, Texas – Cameron County Regional Transportation Authority Executive Director Pete Sepulveda Jr. welcomed the White House's approval of the Presidential Permit for the Flor de Mayo International Bridge.
The $30 million project would be built on Brownsville's west side at the end of Flor de Mayo Road, where Military Highway meets the southern end of Alton Grohl Boulevard.
“We are very happy and very excited. I think the presidential authorization will accelerate the project timeline somewhat. We are very much looking forward to working with Mexico,” Sepulveda said. Rio Grande Guardian.
“We've put a lot of work into this project, we've got the right-of-way that's necessary for the project, and we're probably going through the NEPA process as well. We think it's going to be a great help to Brownsville and Matamoros.”
NEPA stands for National Environmental Policy Act.
Sepulveda noted that CCRMA has been working on this project for many years. When asked how many years, Sepulveda replied:
“Probably about seven or eight years. We did a feasibility study first and then updated it once or twice. But we never had the luxury of being able to say we had the presidential green light. That changed everything. I think having the presidential green light gives the project a lot more credibility. So we're ready to start the planning process with Mexico and move the project forward.”
Sepulveda said the Brownsville side of the bridge has a lot of residential neighborhoods and big box stores at the intersection of Alton Grohl Boulevard and Interstate 69 East. The Matamoros side is industrial and commercial.
“The (maquila) plant manager actually lives on the U.S. side, but he travels to Matamoros every day. So this plant is a straight line from Brownsville to Matamoros, so it's ideal for all of our employees who work in this industrial area.”
Sepulveda also noted that the bridge is open only to vehicles and pedestrians.
“The Brownsville side is a densely residential area, so we didn't want to have commercial traffic there, so it will be vehicular and pedestrian only. That in itself makes the project a lot easier.”
Asked why the new bridge is important, Sepulveda pointed to the new jobs that the Port of Brownsville's liquefied natural gas export terminal will create.
“We're going to have a lot of people coming in, so we need to ensure international mobility between Brownsville and Matamoros and keep traffic flowing well at the Brownsville border.”
Editor's note: Below is the Guardian's video interview with Sepulveda.
