02 May 2007
U.S., Canada, Mexico Aim To Liberalize Air Transport in 10 Years
Commit to building a safe, efficient, well-integrated transportation system
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U.S. Department of Transportation
Office of Public Affairs
April 27, 2007
Remarks for The Honorable Mary Peters
Secretary of Transportation
North American Transportation Trilateral
Ministerial Declaration Signing
Tucson, AZ
12:30 p.m.
Secretary Téllez, Minister Cannon, thank you for being here. We have come to Tucson with one important goal: to make it easier for people and products to travel among our three nations.
This is the first time that the three transportation leaders from Mexico, Canada, and the United States have come together to discuss a vision for North American transportation.
Our objective is to strengthen the U.S., Canadian, and Mexican economies by preventing the kind of costly tie ups and limited services that hamper our ability to compete worldwide.
In a few minutes, we will sign a Ministerial Declaration on behalf of our nations that will lead to safer and more efficient travel across North America.
The most significant piece of this document, in my opinion, is the vision for reaching a Trilateral Open Skies agreement between our three countries within the next 10 years.
We have an opportunity to set a new global standard for free and open trans-border air travel, and bring greater convenience and lower prices to shippers and travelers who want to reach places like Tucson, Toronto, or Torreón.
We start from a strong foundation. Scheduled flights between the United States, Canada, and Mexico have grown by 30 percent in just the past five years as we have removed restrictions and allowed airlines greater freedom to respond to market demand. As we eliminate the remaining barriers for airlines wanting to offer new passenger and cargo service, more flights and more freedoms will follow.
In addition to expanding air service between our three countries, the agenda we are committing to today will bring efficiencies to our ports, eliminate costly backups at our borders, and make it easier for businesses to ship goods throughout the continent.
It will ensure that our transportation networks can efficiently handle the staggering $1.7 million in trade that crosses our borders every minute – and the even larger volumes we anticipate in the future.
This growing trade – and the thriving economy it feeds – creates jobs, supports businesses, and improves the quality of life here in Tucson and in towns and cities throughout our countries.
Today’s commitment is more than an agreement to meet again. It is a declaration that the best way to help our national economies is to make North America competitive. And it is an acknowledgement that shipping costs and travel times are as important to success and failure in today’s global economy as marketing and product plans.
Minister Cannon, Secretary Téllez, I look forward to continuing this important work with you as we build on today’s efforts to make our slice of the world even more competitive and prosperous.
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(Distributed by the Bureau of International Information Programs, U.S. Department of State. Web site: http://usinfo.state.gov)
