Customs to Help Speed Shipments
DETROIT — Federal officials unveiled a program Tuesday that is intended to speed up U.S. customs inspections of planes, trucks and ships carrying imports without sacrificing security.
“We will enhance security,” said Homeland Security Director Tom Ridge, standing beneath the Ambassador Bridge, the busiest crossing on the U.S.-Canada border. “We will facilitate commerce. And in the end, we’ll be a safer and a stronger country because of it.”
To participate, a company must enforce security on its own supplier network and supply data to the Customs Service. It also must conduct stiffer employee background checks. In exchange, the company will enjoy fast-track treatment at the nation’s border crossings.
Sixty companies have joined the program so far, including General Motors, Ford, DaimlerChrysler, BP America, Motorola, Sara Lee and Target.
The partnership should result in quicker border crossings than before Sept. 11, said Kevin Smith, GM’s director of customs administration.
GM gets about 600 truckloads of goods shipped from Canada daily. Under the new program, Smith said, the auto maker will give the government advance information on the goods and the suppliers.
About 15 minutes before a shipment arrives at the border, GM will electronically notify customs that a truck is approaching the border and exactly what is on it.
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