The U.S. land borders with Canada and Mexico are likely to remain closed to nonessential travel until December 21 at the earliest.
According to Reuters.com, current travel restrictions between the three countries are set to expire on Saturday, but a growing number of coronavirus cases in North America have forced officials to extend the shutdown.
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The United States leads the world in deaths from COVID-19, but cases are increasing in all three countries. As a result, government officials decided that extending the shutdown would be prudent to help mitigate the spread.
The COVID-19-related restrictions were first implemented in March and have been extended every month since then. A Homeland Security official told Reuters the agency was “continuing to seek appropriate public health criteria for a future reassessment of existing restrictions.”
In Canada, a government spokesman in Ottawa said travel restrictions would remain in effect for at least another month, while Mexico’s Foreign Ministry said the “spread of COVID-19 in both countries” reinforced the need for an extension.
Data from earlier this year suggests that US visits to Canada by car had plummeted by more than 95 percent in August compared to the previous year.
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