Timing is Everything

It's not usually a good idea to plan the introduction of new technology around events that could make the transition to the new system more complicated. But that's what the Customs and Border Protection did when it decided to turn on a new computer system at the San Ysidro Port of Entry in California. The agency began using this week its Vehicle Primary Client, a system that should give "agents more detailed information about the vehicles and drivers waiting to cross into the United States," according to The San Diego Union-Tribune. The system incorporates radio frequency identification technology and is part of the Western Hemisphere Travel Initiative.

CBP installed the system the same week that many students were returning to school, the paper reported. The spike in border traffic, combined with agents still learning to work the new system, caused a line of cars waiting to enter the United States to extend for about a mile.

Members of Congress have voiced concerns that border initiatives like the Vehicle Primary Client may cause long waits at the border, but CBP officials say the kinks will be worked out.