[1] Many of the innovations that have become common worldwide were pioneered with the Smart Border initiative, including cargo and passenger preclearance, the NEXUS trusted traveller program, and joint policing missions on cross-border threats.
[2] Within a day, backups had grown to 15 hours at the border between Windsor and Detroit, and U.S.-bound semi-trailer trucks, many carrying Canadian-made auto parts to American factories, formed queues dozens of kilometers long.
[3][6] In the agreement, Canada and the United States pledged to share passenger lists on flights between the two countries, and to develop an integrated approach for processing truck, rail, and marine cargo away from the border.
[11][3] Similarly, the Free and Secure Trade (FAST) program (open to truck drivers from the United States, Canada, and Mexico) makes cross-border commercial shipments simpler and quicker.
[4] President Obama and Prime Minister Harper announced the Declaration of a Shared Vision for Perimeter Security and Economic Competitiveness on 4 February 2011, and on 7 December 2011 they released the Beyond the Border Action Plan.
[2] In late 2024, the idea of a North American border-security perimeter re-emerged as a way Canada could respond to President-elect Donald Trump's concerns about illegal migrants and drugs crossing the U.S.-Canada border.