A low-key trial of a dedicated lane for Nexus card holders at the Aldergrove-Lynden and Sumas crossings is underway by United States Customs and Border Protection.

Signs posted along the Aldergrove highway leading to the Kenneth G. Ward port of entry for Lynden, Wash., direct cardholders into their own quick-access route that allows them to bypass backups between noon and 8 p.m.

In response to a 91原创 Advance Times query, a spokesperson for U.S. Customs forwarded copies of one-page flyers showing the Abbotsford crossing is part of a 90-day pilot program that also includes the Sumas port of entry in Abbotsford, which will operate a Nexus lane for a shorter period, from noon till 6 p.m. daily.

Customs and Border Protection 鈥渙ften does pilot programs at ports of entry to determine the best use of resources,鈥� the statement said.

Several people using the new Nexus lane said they鈥檝e been told by U.S. border guards that a decision to continue the pilot program past the 90-day trial will depend on the amount of traffic, including whether the non-Nexus lanes become too congested during the busy summer season.

Nexus allows pre-screened travellers expedited processing when entering the United States and Canada.

There are more than 600,000 active Nexus cardholders in the so-called 鈥淐ascadia Gateway鈥� between Washington and British Columbia, according to a 2019 report by Western Washington University鈥檚 Border Policy Research Institute along with University at Buffalo and the University of Windsor鈥檚 Cross Border Institute.

The same report found that more than 90 per cent of Nexus cardholders entering Canada waited less than five minutes at the Peace Arch Crossing in Blaine, Wash., compared to under 50 per cent for non-members.

There鈥檚 already a Nexus lane for northbound travellers at the Aldergrove crossing into B.C.

An average of 6,000 vehicles a day use the Aldergrove-Lynden crossing on Highway 13, one of five Canada-U.S. border crossings in the Lower Mainland.

Canadian and U.S. crossings in Aldergrove are currently operated for 16 hours a day, from 8 a.m. to midnight, but there are plans by the U.S. General Services Administration (GSA) to modernize and expand the U.S. side of the Aldergrove-Lynden border crossing that could allow 24-hour operation.

A project to widen and upgrade Highway 13 near the Aldergrove-Lynden border crossing on the B.C. side, completed in 2020, created two northbound travel lanes and three southbound lanes on Highway 13, including what was described as a a future Nexus lane to improve highway capacity for southbound travellers.

Plan your adventures throughout the West Coast at and follow us on and @thewestcoasttraveller. And for the top West Coast Travel stories of the week delivered right to your inbox, sign up for our weekly !