Camp Pendleton
The immigration checkpoint on Interstate 5 near Camp Pendleton will be moved several miles south in a few years, the Border Patrol has announced.
Each day, thousands of cars are slowed, sometimes to a halt, at the immigration checkpoint. To increase driver safety, the checkpoint is tentatively scheduled to be moved in three to five years to an area on I-5 north of Las Pulgas Road, Assistant Chief Robert Gilson of the San Diego Border Patrol office said Thursday.
Growing traffic volume necessitated the move, Gilson said. “It’s a safety factor (because of) the volume of traffic we’re dealing with . . . I’m sure we’ve had some fender-benders up there,” Gilson said.
The new station will be bigger, with 13 inspection lanes, and is likely to cost several million dollars. The current facility has four inspection lanes.
The new property is owned by Camp Pendleton. Marine officials have tentatively agreed to transfer the land to the Border Patrol.
The old facility will be closed when the new one is opened, Gilson said.
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