Storm gathers over trade corridor

Fort Worth Star-Telegram

April 23, 2007

ALPINE -- There are signs on U.S. 67 on the edge of town saying the highway is part of 'La Entrada al Pacifico' corridor, but until recently most locals paid little attention to them.

That changed last month when a series of public meetings about the proposed 812-mile trade corridor from the Mexican port of Topolobampo to Midland-Odessa brought the proposal into sharp focus.

Instead of a vague plan, residents were alarmed to learn that the route could be finalized in a little over a year.

Visions of hundreds of big rigs rumbling down the streets of Alpine and Marfa, bringing gridlock and pollution, created an uproar in the Davis Mountains communities, pitting the interests of the tourism-minded Big Bend region against the economic dreams of Midland-Odessa.