Erie County Clerk Kathleen C. Hochul helps Michael Peterson, 16, of East Amherst, as he applies for enhanced nondriver's ID card.
Sharon Cantillon / Buffalo News

Updated: 03/04/09 08:45 AM
FOCUS: BORDER CROSSING
Early birds set ID pace before security tightens
By Lou Michel
NEWS STAFF REPORTER


When border guards a year ago wanted more than a statement of U. S. citizenship from motorists crossing at the Peace Bridge, a lot of people feared long lines.

Those lines never formed, as the guards were lenient and just issued written warnings.

Come June, though, those same border guards are going to demand a document, and border officials anticipate smooth sailing.

That optimism is based on increased demand for enhanced driver’s licenses, passports and passport cards—all acceptable documents under the Western Hemisphere Travel Initiative that Congress passed after the terrorist attacks of 9/11 to strengthen the country’s borders.

Last September, for instance, the Erie County clerk’s office issued 707 of the new licenses.

Since Jan. 1, the same office has issued 4,000 enhanced licenses, 40 percent of the total issued throughout the state.

In addition, the U. S. Postal Service in the last two years has processed 173,000 passport applications from Western New York residents and thousands more passport cards nationally since they became available last summer.

This all comes as the Peace Bridge, for the first time in two decades, has become the busiest northern border crossing, surpassing the Ambassador Bridge in Detroit, with 6.8 million individuals crossing from Fort Erie, Ont., into Buffalo last year.

“We are more than a border community with Canada. Instead of just being a foreign country, Canada’s more like a neighbor to us, meaning we want to keep the flow of commerce between our communities strong,â€