Douglas – Agua Prieta

Douglas pairs with Agua Prieta in the far southeastern corner of Arizona, one of the smaller commercial gateways on the border and one about to change shape. Today, commercial traffic processes at the Raul Héctor Castro Port of Entry, which handles trucks, cars, and pedestrians in a single aging compound. The U.S. General Services Administration has broken ground on a new dedicated commercial land port of entry west of town, funded through the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law, with substantial completion expected in May 2029. When it opens, CBP plans to move commercial inspection entirely to the new facility, according to GSA.

What brokers should know

• Small today, bigger tomorrow. Current commercial capacity is limited and shares space with passenger flows, so schedule padding matters more here than at purpose-built ports.
• Mining country. Agua Prieta and the northern Sonora interior support mining and maquiladora operations that generate steady, if modest, cross-border freight, including specialized and flatbed moves.
• Check hours. Small ports adjust commercial schedules frequently, so verify current cargo hours with CBP before dispatch.

Freight here typically runs as regional cross-border moves with a transfer at the line or door-to-door service when equipment allows. See transbordo for how border transfers differ from transloads. For deeper carrier pools in Arizona, Nogales-Mariposa sits about two hours west and covers the same Sonora geography from the other side. Fundamentals on documents, customs brokers, and crossing mechanics are in Mexico 101.

On Cargado, Douglas is an early market, and the carrier pool is still forming. Brokers with recurring Agua Prieta freight can work with Cargado to seed carriers on the lane rather than waiting for organic coverage.

Popular lanes through Douglas

Every Cargado lane that routes through this crossing carries a border-aware route map and a day-by-day transit estimate, with the Mexican leg and the U.S. leg broken out at the border. A sample:

• Hermosillo → Toronto On
• Hermosillo → Laredo
• Laredo → Hermosillo
• Toronto On → Hermosillo
• Hermosillo → Montreal Qc
• Hermosillo → Houston
• Houston → Hermosillo
• Hermosillo → Vancouver Bc
• Hermosillo → Los Angeles
• Los Angeles → Hermosillo
• Vancouver Bc → Hermosillo
• Hermosillo → Calgary Ab

Browse all Mexico & Canada freight lanes →

On the Cargado network

Carrier capacity at Douglas

Douglas is an Arizona port the app pairs with Agua Prieta, Sonora. Dry van is the only family with freight posted through it. Carriers with reefer, open deck and straight truck equipment list Douglas as well, though few loads for those three are posted through it so far.

Freight posted through Douglas starts or ends in Sonora, and Sonora freight does not have to cross at Douglas. It is also posted through Nogales, the other Arizona port with a Sonora town across the line, and through San Luis, Calexico East, Otay Mesa, El Paso and Laredo. The Nogales page shows that crossing in full.

B1 and CDL carriers, C-TPAT and FAST carriers and bonded-for-Mexico carriers all appear among those that declare Douglas. A declaration says where a carrier will cross, not how often it has.

Douglas in brief

• Port pair: Douglas, Arizona, and Agua Prieta, Sonora.
• Freight posted: dry van.
• Reefer, open deck and straight truck: carriers list the crossing, with no freight described.
• Declared by carriers here: B1 and CDL drivers, C-TPAT, FAST and a Mexico bond.
• Mexican state: Sonora, which also posts through Nogales.

How to reach Douglas capacity on Cargado

Post the load from the real Sonora pickup and name Douglas as the crossing. If a Nogales routing would work as well, settle which one with your customs broker first. A dry van load is the simple case. For reefer, open deck or straight truck, name the trailer, the commodity and any requirement in the posting, and say if C-TPAT or a bond is required. Matching notifies carriers by saved search, service area or an open truck near the pickup, and the suggested-carrier list gives the reason for each.

At a glance

Freight posted on Cargado

• Freight is posted through Douglas for dry van, and carriers with dry van equipment declare the crossing.
• Freight is posted between Sonora and the U.S. through Douglas.
• Sonora freight is also posted through Nogales, San Luis, Calexico East, Otay Mesa, El Paso and Laredo.

Carriers declare it

• Carriers with reefer, open deck and straight truck equipment declare the Douglas crossing.
• Carriers with B1 drivers and CDL drivers declare the Douglas crossing.
• C-TPAT, FAST and bonded-for-Mexico carriers declare the Douglas crossing.

More questions

What freight is posted through Douglas?

Only dry van. Carriers with reefer, open deck and straight truck equipment list the crossing, but we cannot point to freight for them, so spell out the trailer, the commodity and the pickup window on those loads.

Where in Mexico does Douglas freight start?

Sonora. Agua Prieta is the town across the line, but a Sonora load can start further inland, so put the real origin on the posting. Other Sonora gateways such as Nogales are open to the same load.

Can I ask for FAST carriers on a Douglas load?

Yes. FAST is one of the requirements you can set on a posting, with C-TPAT, a bond and a cargo insurance minimum, and FAST carriers list Douglas. Each certification is the carrier's declaration, backed by documents we review.