By A. Pawlowski, NBC News contributor
If you?re hitting the road on Tuesday, expect to see even more eyes and cameras than usual watching you if you?re taking public transportation or catching a flight a day after the deadly blasts in Boston.
The metropolis itself is telling travelers to be patient.
?The city of Boston is open,? said Massachusetts Gov. Deval Patrick, in a news conference on Monday evening. ?But it will not be business as usual.?
Commuters riding on Boston trains and subways should expect random checks of backpacks and other parcels, Patrick said, adding that travelers should count on ?that inconvenience for the time being? and remain in a state of heightened vigilance.
If you use Boston mass transit to get to work and get around, you should be good to go on Tuesday, with trains and buses operating on a normal schedule.
The blasts did not cause any damage to the Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority, which operates subway service and commuter rail in the city, said spokesman Joe Pesaturo.?
?The MBTA has every intention of operating regularly scheduled service on all lines,? Pesaturo said in an email to NBC News.?
?MBTA personnel and Transit Police, with strong support from the National Guard and other law enforcement agencies, are working side by side to maintain a safe and secure transit environment.?
Copley Station, which was scheduled to be closed for the marathon and which is near the blast zone, will remain closed tomorrow.? But Green Line trains will bypass the station and continue to operate through the Back Bay, making stops at Hynes and Arlington Stations, Pesaturo said.
If you drive, be aware that the area around crime scene will be closed for the foreseeable future, according to Cheryl Fiandaca, a spokeswoman for the Boston Police Department.
Air travelers flying out of and into Boston Logan International should be able to proceed with their journey as usual. The airport remained open all day Monday, operated normally ??save for a brief ground stop after the blasts ??and did not have any delays, said Richard Walsh, a spokesman for the Massachusetts Port Authority.
?I have no reason to think that (Tuesday) won?t be the same,? Walsh said.
?I would advise travelers to check with their airline before leaving for the airport. We give that advice during any irregular operations periods, such as bad weather, so people should probably heed that advice in this situation.?
Charles Krupa / AP
See images from the scene of the explosions.
'Very much alert'
When asked whether fliers would notice any extra security or should plan for additional safety measures, Walsh would only say the airport takes a multi-layered approach to security and the procedures are ?always evolving.?
?Logan Airport is always very much alert,? he said.
The explosions in Boston prompted other major cities to implement extra security measures at their travel gateways. New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo directed state agencies ??including the MTA, which runs the Big Apple?s transit system, and the Port Authority, which operates the three major New York-area airports ??to be on a heightened state of alert.
Washington, D.C. Mayor Vincent Gray said that while no areas of the city have been closed off, visitors and commuters should expect to see more law enforcement officers on patrol.
?You will see a visible increase in presence (in security),? added Metropolitan Police Chief Cathy Lanier during a news conference on Monday.
?We have a very strong security plan in place ... I want people to feel comfortable to take public transportation.?
Even Los Angeles International Airport, some 3,000 miles away from Boston, has increased police presence at its terminals out of an ?abundance of caution,? LAX officials tweeted.
The TSA referred all questions about how the explosions were affecting airport checkpoints and procedures across the country to the Department of Homeland Security, which did not immediately return a request for comment. But in a statement, Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano said the agency is providing ?any support necessary? in the ongoing investigation.
?We encourage the public to be vigilant, and to listen to direction from state and local officials,? Napolitano said.
Meanwhile, Amtrak is increasing security at its stations and asking travelers to report any suspicious or unattended bags. All trains are operating as scheduled.
Related:
No comments:
Post a Comment
Note: Only a member of this blog may post a comment.