The central western corridor includes the largest concentration of maquiladoras and the 2nd largest trade volumes of all the North American corridors. It uses one of the oldest trade routes on the continent, nicknamed the “Camino Real”, or “King’s Road”. The route links Chihuahua in Mexico to Denver, Colorado, via the “Paso del Norte”, the ports of entry of El Paso/Ciudad Juarez between Chihuahua and Texas, and Santa Teresa in New Mexico.
The surface trade flows (by truck and rail) circulate along Highway I-25 in the United States which, together with Highway I-90, brings the corridor north to Montana. Plans are to continue the Camino Real to Great Falls, where the corridor could join up with Canamex, a North American highway project, to enter Canada.
Canamex is a planned four-lane highway extending from Mexico City to Edmonton, Alberta, in Canada. The project has recently received the support of a certain number of states and provinces including Arizona, Sonora and Alberta. The Canadian Government is providing financial support for the building of the North South Trade Corridor in Alberta, the Canadian section of Canamex. The U.S. Congress has designated the completion of Canamex as a high priority in the American road system. Canamex currently uses Highway I-15 in the United States. The external relations secretariat of Mexico has taken on the promotion of the project.