Del Rio Ciudad Acuña Bridge History, Traffic Role and Second Bridge Plans

The Del Rio–Ciudad Acuña International Bridge serves as Val Verde County’s main cross-border link to Ciudad Acuña, Coahuila, carrying vehicles, commercial trucks and pedestrians around the clock under city ownership. The City of Del Rio says, “The International Bridge is owned and operated by the City of Del Rio, accommodating vehicular, commercial and pedestrian traffic. It is open for crossing between Texas and Mexico 24 hours a day, seven days a week, and continues to have one of the shortest crossing times along the Texas-Mexico border making it the first choice for many tourists and businesses looking to enter into Mexico through Texas.”

The structure itself is catalogued in Texas Department of Transportation material as a four-lane bridge, 2,035 feet long, with bridge identification number 22 233 B00770 002 01. TxDOT lists the U.S. owner/operator as the City of Del Rio, the Mexican owner as the Government of Mexico, and the Mexican operator as Caminos y Puentes Federales de Ingresos y Servicios Conexos (CAPUFE). The city also publishes a live traffic feed so the public can “View the incoming and outgoing traffic on the Del Rio International Bridge 24/7.”

Regional roadway work in the late 1990s reshaped approaches and local corridors that serve the bridge. TxDOT Laredo District notes a project let in December 1996 for $4.7 million that completed in early 1999 and a US 90 reconstruction relet in September 1999 with an estimated cost of $4.5 million and estimated completion of November 2001. Those projects included grading, structure and widening work on stretches from Gibbs Street to 17th Street and other approach segments now used by cross-border traffic.

Plans for a second crossing, formally titled the Acuña II-Del Rio International Bridge, are focused on shifting commercial traffic away from the downtown span. As Riojas told the board, the project “consists of building a new international bridge over the Rio Grande jointly with the city of Ciudad Acuña, Coahuila, and the city of Del Rio, Texas, to streamline cargo transportation traffic in both directions.” He added that “The new bridge connects directly to the Ports-to-Plains routes and future I(nterstate)- 27.”

Riojas said feasibility work examined three possible crossing locations - upstream, at the existing bridge and downstream - and that a crossing location was selected in 2014. “Most significantly, we got an agreement on the bridge location. This agreement was signed by the city of Del Rio, Val Verde County, the state of Coahuila and the city of Acuña,” he said. Phase II of the study “identified two possible corridors to route traffic from the new bridge to U.S. Highway 90,” Riojas said. The proposed bridge is intended to “allow commercial traffic to be routed from the existing international bridge, which will enhance community safety by moving heavy truck traffic away from the two cities’ population centers, as well as decreasing pollution by ‘increasing efficiency and reducing wait times.’” He also noted the new bridge “will also enhance safety by allowing the eventual closure of the border crossing atop Amistad Dam.”

For local residents the stakes are practical: fewer heavy trucks through downtown Del Rio and Ciudad Acuña could mean quieter neighborhoods, reduced emissions and safer streets for pedestrians. The City’s ordinance governing the structure, Ord. No. 83-46, integrates bridge affairs into municipal administration to keep operations accountable. Important questions remain about funding, the exact 2014 site choice among upstream/at/downstream options, the two Phase II corridor alignments, and a construction timeline or cost estimate. City officials, county leaders and Mexican partners will need to resolve those details before Acuña II moves from plan to pavement, and Del Rio commuters and businesses should watch for public meetings and traffic updates as the project advances.