International Border Crossing Program
Electronic Screening
Transportation Border Working Group
November 1, 2011
Office of Research and Information Technology
FMCSA Priorities and Goals
 Priorities
 Raise the bar
 Maintain high safety standards
 Remove high-risk carriers
 Strategic Plan 2006-2011
 Advance Electronic Safety and Credential Monitoring to Facilitate
International Traffic Flow at our Nation's Borders
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Safety and Compliance Requirements
 FMCSA
 Driver Credentials
 Equipment fitness
 Federal operating authority status
 Proof of insurance/appropriate coverage
 Border State
 Vehicle registration status
 Size and weight limitations
 Other State-specific requirements
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Determining Which Vehicles to Inspect
 Current screening is manual
 Limits coverage
 Time consuming
 Based on:
 Inspectors’ knowledge of specific carriers
 Visual check of obvious physical defects
 Limited conversation with driver
 Random selection
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International Border Screening Program
 Phase I – Demonstration of Concept – Completed 2007
 Phase II – Analysis of Demonstration – Completed 2009
 Phase III – Field Operational Test – Started June 2011
 Awarded contract to Battelle Memorial Institute. Team includes:
Texas Transportation Institute, Kentucky Transportation Center,
University of Washington
 DOT’s Volpe Center supporting project management and
acquisition and installation of required equipment at border sites
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Enhancing the Screening Process
 International Border Crossing (IBC) e-Screening concept
 Use of radio frequency identification device (RFID) transponders to
identify drivers and vehicles
 RFID technology selected because 90% of trucks entering the U.S.
are equipped
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Phase I – IBC E-Screening Demonstration
 Demonstrated at Santa Teresa, NM port of entry
- Low volume (120-140 trips per day)
- Staffed 80% of time
- Ideal environment for testing and evaluation
 14 carriers participated
 Vehicles screened to validate:
- Currency of CVSA decal and truck registration
- Federal operating authority status of carrier
- Current insurance
- Driver tags/commercial drivers license status
 Over 5,500 transponder reads in demo
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Major Findings
 Technology performed reliably (99% accurate)
 Reduced processing time for selection for inspection (1 sec
vs. 15 min.)
 Increased number of vehicles subject to inspection
(237/month baseline vs. 965/month during demo)
 Focused limited enforcement resources
 Reduces processing for compliant vehicles
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Limitations of Concept
 Currency of CVSA decal
 On-site enrollment is time consuming and limiting
 No way to identify trailer electronically verify compliance
 All drivers did not have ID cards
 Screening decision displayed only inside facility
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Phase II – Analyses of Demonstration
 Utilizing International Trade Data System (ITDS) shared by
Customs and Border Protection (CBP) with FMCSA
 Identify carrier, truck, trailer, and driver
 Eliminate need for on site enrollment
 Tied to other data sources
 Screen on more than 20 factors of interest
 Requirements analysis in seven border States
 Analysis of 20 ports of entry
 Developed system requirements
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Phase III – Field Operational Test
 Deployment and testing of IBC e-Screening system at 4
border locations
 Development of partnerships with States and Customs and
Border Protection
 Conduct outreach with stakeholders to deploy system
nationally
 Ensure user needs are met
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Questions?
Chris Flanigan
Office of Analysis, Research, and Technology
(202) 385-2384
Chris.Flanigan@dot.gov
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