The Laredo–Colombia Solidarity International Bridge is one of four vehicular international bridges located on the U.S.–Mexico border in the city of

Laredo, Texas Laredo ( ; ) is a city in the U.S. state of Texas and the county seat of Webb County, Texas, Webb County, on the north bank of the Rio Grande in South Texas, across from Nuevo Laredo, Tamaulipas, Mexico. Founded in 1755, Laredo grew from a villag ...

; it connects Laredo over the

Rio Grande The Rio Grande ( or ) in the United States or the Río Bravo (del Norte) in Mexico (), also known as Tó Ba'áadi in Navajo language, Navajo, is one of the principal rivers (along with the Colorado River) in the Southwestern United States a ...

(Rio Bravo) with

Colombia, Nuevo León Colombia is a planned community founded in 1992 by the Mexican state of Nuevo León in the Anáhuac Municipality. It lies on the southern banks of the Río Grande, across from the U.S. city of Laredo, Texas. According to the INEGI Census, in ...

. It is owned and operated by the City of Laredo and the

Secretaría de Comunicaciones y Transportes The Secretariat of Infrastructure, Communications and Transportation (''Secretaría de Infraestructura, Comunicaciones y Transportes'', SICT) of Mexico is the national federal entity that regulates commercial road traffic and broadcasting. Its h ...

(Mexico's Federal Ministry of Communications and Transportation).

History

The Laredo–Colombia Solidarity International Bridge was named in honor of the Mexican planned community of

. The community and the international bridge were built because the

Mexican state A Mexican State (), officially the Free and Sovereign State (), is a constituent federative entity of Mexico according to the Constitution of Mexico. Currently there are 31 states, each with its own constitution, government, state governor, a ...

Nuevo León Nuevo León, officially the Free and Sovereign State of Nuevo León, is a Administrative divisions of Mexico, state in northeastern Mexico. The state borders the Mexican states of Tamaulipas, Coahuila, Zacatecas, and San Luis Potosí, San Luis ...

, which has a very small border with the United States, wanted an international port to compete with the bordering states of

Coahuila Coahuila, formally Coahuila de Zaragoza, officially the Free and Sovereign State of Coahuila de Zaragoza, is one of the 31 states of Mexico. The largest city and State Capital is the city of Saltillo; the second largest is Torreón and the thi ...

and

Tamaulipas Tamaulipas, officially the Free and Sovereign State of Tamaulipas, is a state in Mexico; one of the 31 states which, along with Mexico City, comprise the 32 federal entities of Mexico. It is divided into 43 municipalities. It is located in nor ...

in the

international trade International trade is the exchange of capital, goods, and services across international borders or territories because there is a need or want of goods or services. (See: World economy.) In most countries, such trade represents a significan ...

market. Access to the Rio Grande and an international crossing secure that port. Indeed, the Laredo–Colombia Solidarity International Bridge is the only border crossing between

and

Texas Texas ( , ; or ) is the most populous U.S. state, state in the South Central United States, South Central region of the United States. It borders Louisiana to the east, Arkansas to the northeast, Oklahoma to the north, New Mexico to the we ...

Description

The Laredo–Colombia Solidarity International Bridge is an eight-lane bridge with two walkways for pedestrians. The bridge is long. The international bridge is for all traffic, including pedestrians. The bridge is also known as Laredo International Bridge 3, Colombia Bridge, Puente Solidaridad, Puente Colombia and Puente Internacional Solidaridad Colombia. On the United States side, the bridge connects to Texas State Highway 255, a road that bypasses downtown Laredo and connects to

Interstate 35 Interstate 35 (I-35) is a major Interstate Highway in the central United States. As with most primary Interstates that end in a five, it is a major cross-country, north–south route. It stretches from Laredo, Texas, near the Mexican bo ...

. On the Mexico side, the bridge connects to Nuevo Leon State Highway 1 Spur which in turn connects it to Highway 1 proper.

Location

This bridge is located at the western terminus of State Highway 255, near its intersection with FM 1472, in Laredo, Texas and the northern terminus of Nuevo León State Highway Spur 1 in

Colombia Colombia, officially the Republic of Colombia, is a country primarily located in South America with Insular region of Colombia, insular regions in North America. The Colombian mainland is bordered by the Caribbean Sea to the north, Venezuel ...

, Anáhuac Municipality.

Border crossing

The Laredo Columbia Solidarity Port of Entry was built on January 6, 1991, in an effort to relieve traffic from the congested downtown Laredo bridges.

Operational hours

Commercial Vehicles *Sunday: 10:00 AM–2:00 PM *Weekdays: 8:00 AM–10:30 PM *Saturday: 9:00 AM–4:00 PM Non-commercial Vehicles *All Days: 8:00 AM–12:00 AM
All times

Central Time Zone The North American Central Time Zone (CT) is a time zone in parts of Canada, the United States The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It ...

References

External links

Laredo-Colombia Solidarity International Bridge Webcam (American Side)

* ttp://www.wikimapia.org/#y=27699688&x=-99745672&z=18&l=0&m=a Aerial View of Laredo-Colombia Solidarity International Bridge
Statistical Data
{{DEFAULTSORT:Laredo-Colombia Solidarity International Bridge International bridges in Laredo, Texas International bridges in Nuevo León Nuevo León Toll bridges in Texas Bridges completed in 1992 Road bridges in Texas Toll bridges in Mexico Box girder bridges in the United States