BORDER MARKETPLACES AS INFRASTRUCTURES OF MOBILITY: VISA REGIMES AND EVERYDAY TRANS LOCALITY IN TEXAS

This article examines the role of border marketplaces in Texas as infrastructures of mobility in 2025, with a focus on how visa regimes shape everyday trans local practices between the United States and Mexico. Drawing on ethnographic fieldwork, 50 semi-structured interviews, a survey of 300 households, and official crossing and visa statistics, the study demonstrates that marketplaces function as central nodes where economic, social, and regulatory dimensions of mobility converge. Findings reveal that visa restrictions do not simply curtail cross-border movement but actively reconfigure it, producing adaptive practices such as clustering activities into single visits, reliance on intermediaries, and differentiated trading strategies. Regression analyses show that visa status and household income significantly predict frequency and expenditure of market visits, while qualitative narratives highlight the symbolic role of marketplaces as spaces of belonging and family continuity. The research contributes to border and mobility studies by conceptualizing marketplaces as infrastructures of circulation and identity, demonstrating how adaptation to restriction is stratified and how resilience coexists with inequality. Policy implications emphasize that restrictive visa regimes undermine not only Mexican households but also Texas economies, suggesting the need to recognize marketplaces as integral infrastructures for sustaining livelihoods, communities, and cross-border integration.