LiveWaits / Border crossings / Bridge of the Americas (BOTA) (El Paso)

Bridge of the Americas (BOTA) (El Paso) border wait times

Bridge of the Americas (BOTA) (El Paso) is a Mexico land crossing, open 24 hrs/day. CBP is reporting on 5 lane groups here right now, and this page reads that feed directly, so the numbers change while you watch them.Bridge of the Americas (BOTA) (El Paso) on the Mexico border, live from CBP. 5 lane groups reporting now.

Live from CBP · checked 16:45 UTC on 09 October 2026

Bridge of the Americas (BOTA) (El Paso) wait right now, northbound into the U.S.Bridge of the Americas (BOTA) (El Paso) wait right now

80 min Standard lane, northbound into the U.S.

Only 3 of 14 car lanes are open right now.

Cars · Ready

80 min

6 of 14 open

Walk

5 min

1 of 4 open

Walk · Ready

Lanes Closed

Trucks · General

20 min

2 of 3 open

Trucks · FAST

15 min

2 of 3 open

Best time to cross

75m38m0

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Northbound is worst around 5 PM. Typical by hour, CBP prior-year average.

Which lane should you use?

General 80 min

Open to anyone, no sign-up.

3 of 14 open

Ready lanes 80 min

Free with an RFID document.

6 of 14 open

The nearest crossing

This crossing 80 min, cars · here

Santa Teresa Port of Entry (Santa Teresa) 50 min, cars · 13 mi west

Santa Teresa is about 30 minutes faster right now, 13 mi west. Worth the drive if you are not crossing on foot.

Documents you will need

U.S. citizens Passport, passport card, or enhanced driver's license.

Permanent residents Green card (Form I-551).

Visitors Passport plus a visa or ESTA where required.

Children under 16 A birth certificate is accepted by land.

Bridge of the Americas (BOTA) (El Paso) crossing, common questions

How long is the wait at El Paso right now?

The figure at the top of this page is the delay CBP itself reports for passenger vehicles in the general lanes, refreshed every few minutes while the page is open. CBP measures each lane group separately, so cars, pedestrians and trucks can be queueing very differently from one another.

Do NEXUS, SENTRI and Ready lanes actually save time here?

Where CBP staffs them, yes, and this page shows their delay side by side with the general lanes so you can see the gap today rather than in general. When a trusted traveler lane shows no reading it is closed, and the general lane is the only option.

Why does the wait jump around so much?

CBP recalculates from vehicles actually processed, and opens or closes booths through the day. A crossing can go from ten minutes to forty in one update when a lane closes, which is why a number from an hour ago is not worth much.

Live from U.S. Customs and Border Protection; typical-by-hour is CBP's own prior-year average. How these numbers are made.