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(Getty Images)
PHOENIX – Greyhound Lines Inc. no longer allows US authorities to drop immigrant families inside bus stations, forcing released people to wait for tickets.
US immigration and customs officials told The Associated Press on Friday that it had been asked to leave migrants outside the facility instead of transporting them by bus.
For years, ICE has been depositing migrants at Greyhound stations, mainly in Phoenix, after releasing them pending court hearings to decide if they can stay in the country. From the stations, they travel to the United States.
Greyhound spokeswoman Crystal Booker said the company was experiencing an "unprecedented increase in the number of people" in some bus terminals and that travelers needed tickets to enter. She said the policy applies to anyone without a ticket.
"Our priority is to enable customers to efficiently and securely reach their customers," said Booker.
Immigrants released by ICE are generally not informed beforehand and can not arrange their trip before arriving at the station. Most of them have no money and have to wait for a family member or lobby to buy their ticket.
A very large number of Central American families have been to the United States in recent months, with many reporting fleeing violence and planning to seek asylum. Others say that they escape extreme poverty.
In Arizona alone, between December 21, 2018 and March 5, ICE reported the release of approximately 14,500 people who came with their families.
Outside of Phoenix Station, about 15 adults and five children waited Thursday in a shaded area near a parking lot. Some said they were there for about seven hours.
The federal agency relies on volunteer organizations, many of which are faith-based groups, to help families with their travels and meals.
Connie Phillips, President and CEO of Southwestern Lutheran Social Services, said that she did not blame Greyhound for her policy, but rather that immigration officials do not have a sustainable way and in the long run to liberate migrants.
"Filing people in a place that is not supposed to be able to welcome and assist them is not a solution, and we need to work together to create a viable response to this increased need and end to this chaos, "said Phillips.
Immigration authorities say that they release families at bus stations only when volunteer groups run out of space.
"ICE wants to ease the pressure on the resources of the local community as many families are still crossing the border," said spokeswoman Yasmeen Pitts O'Keefe.
Phillips said dozens of volunteers had created a network to meet at Phoenix's bus station when immigrants were dropped off. They bring food and water, allow migrants to use the mobile phones of volunteers and help coordinate travel.
Phillips said support groups could temporarily house about 700 people in the churches and homes of worshipers in the Phoenix area, but that was not enough.
The practice of landing migrants at Greyhound stations is not limited to Phoenix, but this is where it happens most often.
In San Diego, ICE takes families directly from a customs and border post to a shelter run by non-governmental organizations. The authorities have only left migrants at the bus station in some cases.
In McAllen, Texas, migrants are dropped off at a Catholic shelter.
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