The U.S. Customs and Border Protection agency is working together with Unisys Corp. on a Land Border Integration (LBI) project to deploy one of the first pedestrian border crossings in El Paso, Texas.

The initial phase of the Pedestrian Re-engineering initiative comprises a combination of gate systems along with handheld devices and RFID technology to more efficiency identify and process travelers crossing the U.S-Mexico border by foot. Additionally, ten fingerprint biometric capture devices will be included in the gates nearest the inspection booth for future integration into the pedestrian system.

Travelers crossing the border on foot will approach a gate system and present their RFID-enabled travel documents to electronic document readers. While travelers proceed to the primary inspection area, information identifying the travelers will be relayed to officers who will then determine if they are admissible into the U.S.

The contract followed Unisys work on the Western Hemisphere Travel Initiative (WHTI) contract, awarded in 2008. Implemented at all land border ports of entry, the WHTI uses automated license plate reader technology to screen vehicles crossing the border, as well as RFID technology to confirm citizenship and identity of travelers with WHTI-approved, RFID-enabled travel documents.