DETROIT (Sept. 10, 2002) — Prime Minister Jean Chrétien and U.S. President George W. Bush yesterday saw first-hand a system designed to expedite the clearance process for low-risk cargo, drivers, and carriers.

In a meeting at the Ambassador Bridge, the busiest commercial crossing on the U.S.-Canada border, the two leaders reviewed a variety of border security plans including FAST (Free and Secure Trading), a program being developed for commercial shipments. Part of the Smart Border Declaration, a 30-point security plan signed last December, FAST stems from the framework of existing supply-chain security programs, like the Customs Self Assessment (CSA) program in Canada and the U.S. Customs Trade Partnership Against Terrorism (C-TPAT). Essentially, FAST would replace both.

Like CSA, FAST is for low-risk cargo and will require the importer, carrier, and driver to be pre-screened and approved as low security risks. Once registered, the vehicle will use dedicated lanes that cross the border without further inspections; an electronic tracking, auditing, and reporting system will require companies to assess themselves and pay Customs on a monthly basis.

Getting to that point is proving to be a struggle. Unlike CSA and C-TPAT, both federal governments are involved with FAST. Although no date for implementation has been set, pressure from top levels of government and big crossborder shippers have FAST organizers aiming for a deadline by the end of the year.

FAST applies only to truckload shipments; it doesn’t accommodate the large number of divisible loads that move north and south every day.

Moreover, FAST is voluntary. Drivers or carriers who don’t want to undergo such background checks can still get across the border the old fashioned way.