DEL RIO, Texas — Commercial truck crossings from Ciudad Acuña, Mexico, into Del Rio rose 20% over the year ending in July, with more than 93,000 trucks crossing the border, data presented at a transportation conference shows. The figures, presented by Texas A&M International University’s Texas Center for Border Economic and Enterprise Development at the Ports-to-Plains Alliance’s annual conference in Del Rio earlier this month, represent about 16,000 more trucks than the previous year. More than $6 billion in two-way trade moved through the Del Rio International Bridge during the period, according to the data. Local leaders pointed to cooperation between Del Rio and officials in Ciudad Acuña as a factor in the increase. The Mexican city has 52 manufacturing plants employing more than 35,000 people, according to conference information. The growth is drawing attention to the Ports-to-Plains corridor, a planned transportation route linking the Texas-Mexico border north to Canada. The nearly 1,000-mile corridor is intended to connect West and South Texas with markets across North America. “Last year, this port grew 20 percent on its own. Imagine what it does with a corridor behind it,” Del Rio Mayor Alvaro “Al” Arreola said in a statement. Conference participants also considered a proposal for a 113-mile extension of Interstate 27 toward the Rio Grande Valley. Regional Economic Models Inc. estimated the extension would take 25 years to build and cost $5.51 billion. The firm projected it could generate $13 billion in economic output and create more than 2,600 jobs. Liliana Flores, director of the Port of Del Rio, described the city as an increasingly important link between international trade and transportation, agriculture, manufacturing and markets across North America. The estimates for the proposed extension are projections; the presentation does not establish that construction has been approved or funded.