Tijuana's elevated highway is now complete. Will it help ease southbound border traffic?

Alexandra Mendoza, The San Diego Union-Tribune on Mar 18, 2026

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SAN DIEGO — The last section of an elevated highway built near the U.S.-Mexico border is now open.

The nearly $800 million project aims to improve mobility in Tijuana by reducing the average 34-minute trip between Playas de Tijuana and Tijuana International Airport to an estimated 12 minutes, Mexican officials said.

“For many years, it was a dream for our city, and today, it is becoming a reality that will transform the lives of thousands of people,” said Baja California Gov. Marina del Pilar Ávila during a video call appearance at Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum’s daily press conference Monday.

The seven-mile elevated highway, known as the Viaducto Elevado, was built by the Mexican military, as were other major projects in the border region, including the Mexican side of the future Otay Mesa East port of entry and the overhaul of the San Antonio de los Buenos wastewater treatment plant.

Construction on the highway was announced in 2021, and it was once expected to be completed before then-President Andrés Manuel López Obrador’s six-year term ended. Tijuana residents and tourists watched as crews worked day and night on areas parallel to the U.S.-Mexico border fence for over two years. Construction required temporary road closures.

The two-lane corridor in each direction gives residents and tourists more options to move between other key areas — such as downtown Tijuana, the San Ysidro border crossing, and the Rosarito and Ensenada highways.

“We are pleased to have successfully completed this technical challenge on a road that will be traveled by thousands of vehicles every day, helping to keep the city’s arteries flowing,” said Gen. Raúl Manzano, the lead project engineer.

In late January, Sheinbaum inaugurated the first phase of the project, which included a section directly connecting the El Chaparral border crossing to Playas de Tijuana.

Some border commuters have noticed a difference weeks later. State officials and business leaders have noted a series of recent actions that have helped ease bottlenecks at the southbound San Ysidro-Tijuana crossing.

Joaquín Luken, the executive director of the nonprofit Smart Border Coalition, agreed that the elevated highway “greatly helped” with southbound traffic into Tijuana. However, he noted other contributing factors, such as Mexican authorities moving a gate that was obstructing incoming traffic to clear the way to a bridge that connects to the elevated highway or Avenida Internacional.

Now that construction is complete, the bridge will also provide an additional entry point to the new highway heading toward Tijuana International Airport. On Tuesday at 4 p.m., the drive from the border crossing to the airport took about five minutes.

Baja California Secretary of Tourism Miguel Ángel Badiola was one of the officials involved in the discussions with Mexican Customs that resulted in changes to the Mexican port of entry. He said officials monitor the crossing daily to ensure that the gate remains out of the way for travelers during the day and peak hours.

Other actions that officials said helped with traffic included moving hundreds of seized vehicles away from the El Chaparral port of entry.

The vehicles were seized for various reasons, including a lack of proper vehicle documentation or a driver’s license for those traveling with foreign-plated vehicles, officials said. The vehicles were parked around the customs area while the cases were pending.

Earlier this year, several media outlets reported that the vehicles were moved by Mexican officials to a lot near the future Otay Mesa East Port of Entry on the Tijuana side.

State officials have previously explored the possibility of reopening some lanes of the old Puerta Mexico, which served as the vehicle border crossing between San Ysidro and Tijuana for many years. Now that the vehicles have been moved, the roadway leading to the former border crossing is clear, offering a potential option for diverting some of the southbound traffic. Last week, officials said that those conversations remain ongoing.

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