Southbound border traffic into Whatcom hits 15-year high

Southbound border traffic into Whatcom County has returned to levels last seen before the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks.

Last year 15.4 million people crossed the Canada/U.S. border into Whatcom County, an 8.5 percent increase compared to 2011. It's the highest annual total since 1997, when 18.3 million came into Whatcom County, according to data collected by Western Washington University's Center for Economics and Business Research.