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Driver shortages and visa rules tighten US-Mexico trucking capacity
C.H. Robinson said Mexican exports grew 34.4% year over year in June, even as tighter B-1 visa enforcement and documentation checks reduce qualified cross-border trucking drivers.
A new report from logistics provider C.H. Robinson says US-Mexico freight demand remains strong, but operational and regulatory hurdles are making qualified trucking capacity harder to find, potentially limiting how quickly carriers can respond to rising export volumes.
The report points to accelerating Mexican exports despite uncertainty around tariffs and shifting automotive production. It said Mexican exports rose 34.4% year over year in June, the fifth straight month of double digit growth, and first half export growth reached 24.6%, with manufacturing exports up 35.3% in June.
C.H. Robinson said the United States continues to dominate Mexico’s export market, absorbing about 84% of the country’s non-oil exports in the first six months of 2026. Non-oil exports to the US rose 35.8% in June, compared with 25% growth for exports to the rest of the world, supporting ongoing northbound demand for freight capacity.
Even with strong northbound volumes from Mexico’s Coahuila and Nuevo Leon corridors, C.H. Robinson noted capacity constraints tied to driver availability and compliance requirements. It said stricter enforcement of B-1 visas and English language requirements is reducing the pool of Mexican drivers willing or able to run cross-border routes, while additional scrutiny of shipping documentation, cargo values, weight declarations, and cargo securement is slowing operations.
C.H. Robinson added that the top international truck gateway in Laredo, Texas, cooled in August, with truckload volumes down 6.7% week over week and the Laredo truckload rejection index falling to 6.69%, indicating capacity has loosened over the last seven days. Still, the firm said the overall driver qualification pool remains constrained, keeping carriers selective on northbound lanes and supporting rates.